First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 14,690 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 754,542 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,690 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $94,861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $115.98. 5,004,974 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,662,407. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $90.55 and a twelve month high of $142.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $187.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $117.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $124.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14.

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

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 43.43%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total transaction of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 199,274 shares in the company, valued at $22,248,942.10. This represents a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $130.50.

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.