Greenwood Capital Associates LLC trimmed its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Free Report) by 24.8% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 41,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,814 shares during the period. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $6,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MS. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Key Morgan Stanley News
Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on Morgan Stanley to $250 from $225 and kept a Buy rating, signaling more upside as the firm heads into earnings season. Benzinga coverage of Morgan Stanley target increase
- Positive Sentiment: UBS also lifted its target to $255 and reiterated a Buy rating, adding to bullish analyst sentiment ahead of the company’s July 15 Q2 report. Benzinga coverage of UBS target increase
- Positive Sentiment: Media coverage highlighted Morgan Stanley’s view that large-cap tech could rally again, which may be helping the broader “risk-on” tone around financial markets and Morgan Stanley shares. TipRanks article on Morgan Stanley Mag 7 call
- Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also watching Morgan Stanley’s own upcoming earnings release, with expectations for revenue and EPS growth already baked into forecasts, which can keep the stock active but not necessarily directional by itself. Benzinga earnings preview for Morgan Stanley
- Neutral Sentiment: Separately, recent commentary noted Morgan Stanley’s continued shift of client assets toward adviser-led wealth management, a longer-term strategic positive but not a near-term catalyst. 247WallSt article on Morgan Stanley wealth management shift
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Morgan Stanley
Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley
In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total transaction of $2,120,758.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at $32,313,622.25. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total value of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Morgan Stanley Stock Performance
Shares of MS stock opened at $218.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $207.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $344.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.23. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $135.26 and a 12 month high of $230.47.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The company had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.23%.
Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
About Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company’s chief executive and chairman in recent years.
The firm’s primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.
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