Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has increased its price target for Morgan Stanley's stock from $145.00 to $165.00, indicating a potential upside of 5.05% from the stock's previous close.
• A consensus of analysts suggests that Morgan Stanley has a Hold rating, with a target price averaging $139.92, despite mixed ratings from various brokerage firms.
• In a recent quarterly earnings report, Morgan Stanley exceeded expectations by reporting earnings of $2.13 per share on revenue of $16.79 billion, marking an 11.8% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $145.00 to $165.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target would suggest a potential upside of 5.05% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $139.92.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $157.07 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $250.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.79, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.33. The business's 50 day moving average is $145.56 and its 200 day moving average is $130.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $158.48.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.15 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. The trade was a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.12, for a total value of $1,693,440.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 186,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,307,590.40. This represents a 6.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 in the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MS. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,607,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 11,878 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 426.3% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 118,947 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $14,954,000 after purchasing an additional 96,347 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,024,000. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $204,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It operates through Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments.

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