Pittenger & Anderson Inc. Reduces Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 159,347 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 320 shares during the period. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $22,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 111.0% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $161.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $166.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $258.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.32. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $153.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.74.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.55%. The firm had revenue of $18.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $165.54.

About Morgan Stanley

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.