Geller Advisors LLC Sells 100 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Geller Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for approximately 0.5% of Geller Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Geller Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $6,963,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total value of $95,456.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 96,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,545,403.20. The trade was a 0.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total value of $1,124,092.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 199,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,248,942.10. The trade was a 4.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS stock opened at $121.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $90.94 and a 1-year high of $142.03. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $114.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.76. The company has a market capitalization of $196.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.32, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 EPS 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 business had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.02 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. UBS Group raised their price objective 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, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price 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. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.46.

Morgan Stanley 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.