Pathstone Holdings LLC Acquires 2,152 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 170,995 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,152 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $21,511,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MS. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $1,910,200,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 44.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 21,794,873 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,740,051,000 after acquiring an additional 6,744,333 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,561,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,213,599,000 after acquiring an additional 2,725,335 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $324,118,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 50.8% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 7,282,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $915,731,000 after acquiring an additional 2,453,470 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.3%

MS stock opened at $131.00 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $90.94 and a fifty-two week high of $142.03. The business's 50-day moving average is $114.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $210.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.02 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley's revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.82%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is presently 43.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total value of $95,456.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 96,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,545,403.20. This trade represents a 0.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 335,765 shares in the company, valued at $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MS. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Erste Group Bank downgraded Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $132.46.

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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