Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Insider Mandell Crawley Sells 6,954 Shares

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) insider Mandell Crawley sold 6,954 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.61, for a total value of $692,687.94. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,609,353.14. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE MS traded down $0.94 on Thursday, hitting $99.58. 4,335,040 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,256,507. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $92.03 and a 200 day moving average of $87.33. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $69.42 and a twelve month high of $100.98. The company has a market capitalization of $161.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 9.57%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 61.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. TheStreet raised Morgan Stanley from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $87.00 target price (down previously from $94.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, HSBC upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $98.30.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,927,000. Bayesian Capital Management LP bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,660,000. Caxton Associates LP bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,189,000. Bornite Capital Management LP bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at $23,540,000. Finally, Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 141.0% during the 1st quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,005,000 after purchasing an additional 6,244 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

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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