2,249 Shares in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Acquired by Fielder Capital Group LLC

Fielder Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 2,249 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at $477,765,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 21.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,474,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,917,159,000 after buying an additional 4,098,577 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the third quarter worth about $223,596,000. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 53.1% in the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 4,015,294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $327,929,000 after buying an additional 1,393,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 229.0% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,215,753 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,369,000 after buying an additional 846,266 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.19, for a total transaction of $2,324,049.45. Following the sale, the insider now owns 286,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,009,143.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.19, for a total transaction of $2,324,049.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 286,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,009,143.65. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total transaction 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 237,855 shares of company stock valued at $21,084,057. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on MS shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price target (down previously from $94.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. HSBC lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.30.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS stock traded up $1.15 on Monday, reaching $94.79. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,103,496 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,465,847. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $69.42 and a 52 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 has a market capitalization of $154.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $90.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.14.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 6.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.93%.

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.