Constitution Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 2,300 Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Constitution Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,300 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $289,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,850,848 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $881,493,000 after buying an additional 3,369,520 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 382.4% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,597,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $166,555,000 after purchasing an additional 1,266,600 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $89,761,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.7% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 22,404,981 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,335,495,000 after buying an additional 590,872 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 71.2% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,370,572 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $140,077,000 after buying an additional 569,789 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of MS traded up $1.97 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $137.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 12,389,736 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,178,807. The company's 50 day moving average is $128.88 and its 200 day moving average is $113.31. The stock has a market cap of $221.97 billion, a PE ratio of 20.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $83.09 and a 12-month high of $138.08. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. HSBC downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $131.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $129.40.

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.