Whittier Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Rating) by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 839 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,156,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 103.2% in the 3rd quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Accurate Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, My Personal CFO LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 83.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research analysts have commented on MS shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 18th. Odeon Capital Group upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $88.75 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. Cfra upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup lowered Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.63.
Morgan Stanley Stock Performance
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.06. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 16.73%. The firm had revenue of $12.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.16 billion. Equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 31st were paid a $0.775 dividend. This represents a $3.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 50.49%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley
In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 5,100 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $494,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 118,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,500,126. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 5,100 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $494,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 118,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,500,126. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Alistair Darling sold 2,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 25th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,263,835.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 341,699 shares of company stock valued at $33,143,046 in the last 90 days. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
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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