Focused Investors LLC trimmed its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,311,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 306,400 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley accounts for 5.2% of Focused Investors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Focused Investors LLC owned about 0.08% of Morgan Stanley worth $164,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 75.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,850,848 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $881,493,000 after purchasing an additional 3,369,520 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $324,118,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 382.4% in 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 buying an additional 1,266,600 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 111.7% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,331,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $293,174,000 after acquiring an additional 1,230,623 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 26,142.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,055,210 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $132,661,000 after acquiring an additional 1,051,189 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Twelve 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 has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $132.33.
View Our Latest Research Report on Morgan Stanley
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Morgan Stanley news, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 81,440 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,076,654.40. This represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total transaction of $1,783,811.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Morgan Stanley Stock Down 2.5 %
MS stock traded down $3.03 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $119.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,239,412 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,233,594. The company's fifty day moving average price is $130.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $123.47. 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 has a twelve month low of $85.01 and a twelve month high of $142.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.01, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.68. The business had revenue of $16.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.03 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. Morgan Stanley's quarterly revenue was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.60%.
About Morgan Stanley
(
Free Report)
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.
Read More
Before you consider Morgan Stanley, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Morgan Stanley wasn't on the list.
While Morgan Stanley currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
With the proliferation of data centers and electric vehicles, the electric grid will only get more strained. Download this report to learn how energy stocks can play a role in your portfolio as the global demand for energy continues to grow.
Get This Free Report
