Flputnam Investment Management Co. Sells 47,116 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. lessened its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 41.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,247 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 47,116 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $6,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CGC Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 5,200.0% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. RVW Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter worth $27,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 77.3% in the third quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc now owns 328 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 810.8% in the third quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 337 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of MS stock traded up $2.14 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $89.13. The company had a trading volume of 18,291,014 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,935,679. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $95.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.97 billion, a PE ratio of 17.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.43. The company's fifty day moving average is $88.59 and its 200 day moving average is $84.72.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.30. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.49% and a return on equity of 10.36%. The company had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.42 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS. Morgan Stanley's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $87.00 price objective (down from $94.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $97.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $95.66.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total value of $8,730,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 350,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,555,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.56, for a total value of $584,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 97,634 shares in the company, valued at $8,158,297.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total transaction of $8,730,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 350,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,555,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 208,155 shares of company stock worth $18,149,314. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.