Regal Investment Advisors LLC Increases Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Regal Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 165.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,995 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,087 shares during the quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $1,910,200,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 75.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,850,848 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $881,493,000 after buying an additional 3,369,520 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,561,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,213,599,000 after acquiring an additional 2,725,335 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $324,118,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 50.8% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 7,282,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $915,731,000 after buying an additional 2,453,470 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total value of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 199,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,248,942.10. This represents a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at $11,076,654.40. This trade represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,665 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,079. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $1.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $109.06. 5,231,658 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,655,480. The company's 50-day moving average is $119.53 and its 200-day moving average is $124.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $175.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.74, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $90.36 and a 52-week high of $142.03.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.02 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $130.50.

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.