Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC

CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC reduced its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 49.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 6,304 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $663,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 37,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,858,000 after purchasing an additional 4,618 shares during the period. AlphaCore Capital LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 4,923 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the period. First County Bank CT raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. First County Bank CT now owns 4,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the period. 49 Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth $205,000. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 31.7% during the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,442 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,235,000 after acquiring an additional 5,155 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Morgan Stanley from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $112.94.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MS traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $134.69. 6,334,100 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,884,451. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $76.33 and a 1 year high of $135.67. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $116.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $105.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.27 billion. Equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley 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.