iA Global Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 2,754.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 69,940 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 67,490 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,793,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $774,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. 1ST Source Bank grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 15,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,002,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 4,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,408 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $554,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,004 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

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Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded up $0.98 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $125.25. 4,326,021 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,221,122. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.77, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $85.01 and a 12-month high of $142.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $123.31.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. The business 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%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 46.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total value of $1,783,811.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 197,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,891,872.80. This trade represents a 6.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total transaction of $2,380,175.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at $11,076,654.40. The trade was a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on MS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $132.33.

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.