Mackenzie Financial Corp Decreases Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Mackenzie Financial Corp cut its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 69.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 415,882 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 946,529 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $58,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 111.0% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% during the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Abound Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.5% during the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.1%

MS opened at $169.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $171.77. The business’s 50 day moving average is $161.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $147.95. The firm has a market cap of $269.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.33.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.55%. 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 posted $1.88 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total value of $16,434,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 574,986 shares in the company, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. The trade was a 14.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on MS shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Dbs Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $198.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.38.

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.