Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Berkeley Capital Partners LLC

Berkeley Capital Partners LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 81.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 12,336 shares during the period. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $359,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Erste Group Bank lowered Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $132.33.

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Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS traded up $0.98 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $125.25. 4,326,021 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,221,122. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $130.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $123.31. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $85.01 and a 52-week high of $142.03. The company has a market cap of $202.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. The firm had revenue of $16.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.03 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is presently 46.60%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 81,440 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,076,654.40. This represents a 17.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total transaction of $1,783,811.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 197,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,891,872.80. The trade was a 6.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.