Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stock Rating Upgraded by HSBC

HSBC upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. HSBC currently has $118.00 price objective on the financial services provider's stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Morgan Stanley from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $102.68.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 3.2 %

NYSE MS traded up $3.31 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $107.88. The company had a trading volume of 5,606,265 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,093,391. The firm's 50 day moving average is $100.31 and its 200 day moving average is $97.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $109.11. The company has a market capitalization of $175.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $15.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.32 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.24 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was 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 $10,225,710.96. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total transaction of $797,775.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 87,119 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,266,848.03. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 252,000 shares of company stock valued at $26,546,370. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,451,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,585,561,000 after acquiring an additional 5,631,435 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 16.3% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 28,481,070 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,681,778,000 after purchasing an additional 3,981,528 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 600.8% during the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,301,835 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $122,581,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116,058 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the first quarter worth about $87,558,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $85,535,000. 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.