Reliant Investment Management LLC Takes Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Reliant Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 48,838 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,599,000. Morgan Stanley comprises about 2.2% of Reliant Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CGC Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5,200.0% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. First United Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 123.2% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 442 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Union Savings Bank increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of MS traded up $1.42 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $97.19. 9,058,849 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,320,035. The company has a market cap of $157.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.38. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $103.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock's 50-day moving average is $96.61 and its 200-day moving average is $91.76.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.88%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.70 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th were issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on MS. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. TheStreet raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $98.30.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total value of $9,021,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 414,870 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,425,422.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 6,954 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.61, for a total value of $692,687.94. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 46,274 shares in the company, valued at $4,609,353.14. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total transaction of $9,021,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 414,870 shares in the company, valued at $37,425,422.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 118,154 shares of company stock valued at $10,722,696 over the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.