JMP Securities Reiterates Market Perform Rating for Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

JMP Securities reiterated their market perform rating on shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports.

MS has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a neutral rating and set a $87.00 target price (down previously from $94.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. UBS Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and issued a $91.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Cfra increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. 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.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $98.07.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.4 %

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $90.66 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $88.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $69.42 and a 12 month high of $95.57. The stock has a market cap of $147.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.43.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued 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. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.87% and a net margin of 9.57%. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.70 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.93, for a total value of $4,396,500.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 400,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,172,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.92, for a total value of $879,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 313,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,562,040.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.93, for a total transaction of $4,396,500.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 400,000 shares in the company, valued at $35,172,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 302,355 shares of company stock worth $26,753,102. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CGC Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 5,200.0% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc now owns 328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 810.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

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.