Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Trading 3.4% Higher

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 3.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $99.99 and last traded at $99.95. 1,424,554 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 7,522,570 shares. The stock had previously closed at $96.71.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer lowered Morgan Stanley from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Morgan Stanley from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $99.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $101.45.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 2.8 %

The firm's fifty day moving average is $99.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.10. The firm has a market cap of $161.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.17. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 11.90%. The business had revenue of $15.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.32 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total transaction of $106,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 95,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,225,710.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total transaction of $368,375.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,549,326. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total transaction of $106,620.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 95,908 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,225,710.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 252,000 shares of company stock worth $26,546,370 over the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC now owns 12,319 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 24.4% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 541 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 7,965 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $774,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,553 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $994,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.7% in the second quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 15,410 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,498,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during 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.