Cornerstone Advisors LLC Increases Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Cornerstone Advisors LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 4.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 88,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $9,257,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.4 %

MS opened at $131.69 on Thursday. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $114.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.68. The company has a market cap of $212.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $76.33 and a one year high of $135.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.27 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 56.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $118.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $112.94.

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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