Topsail Wealth Management LLC Invests $506,000 in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Topsail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 4,028 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $506,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 6,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $774,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. 1ST Source Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 15,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,002,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 4,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,408 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $554,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,004 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded down $1.28 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $114.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,361,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,644,578. The company has a market capitalization of $183.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $116.02 and a 200 day moving average of $124.71. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $90.55 and a 12 month high of $142.03.

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

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 43.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $130.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total value of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 199,274 shares in the company, valued at $22,248,942.10. This trade represents a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.19% 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.