Bfsg LLC Makes New $56,000 Investment in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $56,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MS. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 21.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,474,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,917,159,000 after acquiring an additional 4,098,577 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,159,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,074,718,000 after purchasing an additional 415,531 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,107,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,070,528,000 after purchasing an additional 277,909 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 8,082,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $660,067,000 after buying an additional 483,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,672,135 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $544,913,000 after buying an additional 766,530 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TheStreet raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.07.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.4 %

MS opened at $92.56 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $95.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company’s 50-day moving average is $89.55 and its 200 day moving average is $85.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.86, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.43.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS. Research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 6.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.41, for a total transaction of $393,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 93,134 shares in the company, valued at $8,140,842.94. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Morgan Stanley news, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.41, for a total transaction of $393,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 93,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,140,842.94. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total value of $9,021,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 414,870 shares in the company, valued at $37,425,422.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 252,355 shares of company stock worth $22,356,602 in the last quarter. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.