Covington Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Rating) by 33.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,269 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,073 shares during the period. Covington Capital Management’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 103.2% during the third quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Surevest LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 37.0% in the 3rd quarter. Surevest LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 118.9% in the 3rd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trustcore Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 69.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trustcore Financial Services LLC now owns 574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.48% of the company’s stock.
Insider Activity
In other news, Director Alistair Darling sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.70, for a total value of $189,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,263,835.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Alistair Darling sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.70, for a total value of $189,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,263,835.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 24,556 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.23, for a total value of $2,412,135.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 190,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,706,921.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 341,699 shares of company stock valued at $33,143,046 in the last ninety days. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Morgan Stanley Stock Performance
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $12.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.16 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 16.73%. Equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 31st were paid a $0.775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 30th. This represents a $3.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.49%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $92.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $92.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 18th. Finally, Odeon Capital Group upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $88.75 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.28.
Morgan Stanley Company Profile
Morgan Stanley operates as a global financial services company. The firm provides investment banking products and services to its clients and customers including corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals. It operates through the following segments: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management.
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