Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Has $249.71 Million Stock Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 2,332.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,406,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,348,683 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley makes up approximately 0.4% of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $249,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Maxele Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Maxele Advisors LLC now owns 2,655 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.7% in the 4th quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522 shares during the period. Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 123.2% in the 4th quarter. Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd now owns 13,873 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,463,000 after purchasing an additional 7,658 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10,167.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 664,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $118,117,000 after purchasing an additional 657,704 shares during the period. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11,162.5% in the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 901 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Morgan Stanley News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its S&P 500 outlook to 8,000 for year-end and 8,300 over 12 months, signaling confidence in the broader equity backdrop and the bank’s market strategy. Article: The stock market doesn’t need Fed cuts, says Morgan Stanley as it rachets S&P 500 view higher
• Positive Sentiment: The firm is being cited in several bullish sector calls, including bullish commentary on Ford and other stocks, which keeps Morgan Stanley visible as a leading voice in equity research and capital markets. Article: Ford’s Best 2-Day Rally Since 2020: History Says A 200% Year Could Follow
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley was also tied to a new digital bond-market initiative through LTX, suggesting continued investment in electronic fixed-income trading infrastructure rather than a direct earnings catalyst. Article: Morgan Stanley Deepens Digital Bond Push With LTX AI Partnership

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the transaction, the insider owned 282,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. This represents a 15.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.3%

NYSE MS opened at $194.40 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $306.63 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.22. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $123.88 and a one year high of $197.50. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $175.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.60 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 36.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Evercore increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.26.

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company’s chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm’s primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.