Summit Global Investments Sells 10,957 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Summit Global Investments lessened its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 83.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,144 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,957 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments' holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $270,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS traded down $3.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $115.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,347,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,528,013. The stock's 50-day moving average is $130.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $185.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $85.01 and a one year high of $142.03.

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Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. The company 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 197,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,891,872.80. This represents a 6.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were 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 directly owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at $11,076,654.40. The trade was a 17.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Erste Group Bank downgraded Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $131.53.

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.