Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Holdings Lessened by Hamlin Capital Management LLC

Hamlin Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,490,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,303 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley makes up approximately 4.6% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Hamlin Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Morgan Stanley worth $187,407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $346,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC now owns 2,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Mason & Associates Inc grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Mason & Associates Inc now owns 3,177 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Bank of New Hampshire grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,313 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 3,748 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $391,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS traded down $2.07 on Tuesday, reaching $135.80. 5,131,003 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,913,843. The stock has a market cap of $218.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $83.09 and a twelve month high of $138.08. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $129.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.03. 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 Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.68. The firm had revenue of $16.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.03 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. Morgan Stanley's quarterly revenue was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.13 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.06 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. HSBC downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $131.27.

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.