Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Purchased by Lyell Wealth Management LP

Lyell Wealth Management LP boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 108,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,909 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley accounts for approximately 1.2% of Lyell Wealth Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Lyell Wealth Management LP’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $15,252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. McLean Asset Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.5% during the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 5,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $707,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.4% during the second quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC now owns 3,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.4% during the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 2,295 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.7% during the second quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 1,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:MS opened at $158.70 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $253.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.32. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.33 and a one year high of $166.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $153.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $137.30. 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 (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $18.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.55% and a net margin of 13.85%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.54.

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.