Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 5.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,542,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 139,926 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.16% of Morgan Stanley worth $418,369,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total transaction of $2,779,935.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. This represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MS. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $214.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.20.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on Morgan Stanley to $250 from $225 and kept a Buy rating, signaling more upside as the firm heads into earnings season. Benzinga coverage of Morgan Stanley target increase
• Positive Sentiment: UBS also lifted its target to $255 and reiterated a Buy rating, adding to bullish analyst sentiment ahead of the company’s July 15 Q2 report. Benzinga coverage of UBS target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Media coverage highlighted Morgan Stanley’s view that large-cap tech could rally again, which may be helping the broader “risk-on” tone around financial markets and Morgan Stanley shares. TipRanks article on Morgan Stanley Mag 7 call
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also watching Morgan Stanley’s own upcoming earnings release, with expectations for revenue and EPS growth already baked into forecasts, which can keep the stock active but not necessarily directional by itself. Benzinga earnings preview for Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Separately, recent commentary noted Morgan Stanley’s continued shift of client assets toward adviser-led wealth management, a longer-term strategic positive but not a near-term catalyst. 247WallSt article on Morgan Stanley wealth management shift

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.7%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $218.20 on Thursday. 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 has a 1-year low of $135.26 and a 1-year high of $230.47. The company has a market cap of $344.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.23. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $207.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $186.70.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.60 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 36.23%.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

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.