Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $129.40.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. 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. Finally, HSBC lowered Morgan Stanley from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS stock traded up $1.97 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $137.78. 12,389,736 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,932,170. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $83.09 and a fifty-two week 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. The stock's fifty day moving average is $129.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.77. The company has a market cap of $221.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.68. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. The firm had revenue of $16.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 115.9% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 17,619 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,713,000 after buying an additional 9,459 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 26.7% during the second quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 14,790 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,437,000 after acquiring an additional 3,116 shares during the period. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 44.9% during the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,242 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,093,000 after purchasing an additional 3,484 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 89,062 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,656,000 after purchasing an additional 3,874 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 526,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $51,137,000 after buying an additional 8,260 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

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.