Madison Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 37,780 Morgan Stanley $MS

Madison Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 37,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,898,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $246,000. Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at about $210,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth about $976,000. Foster & Motley Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth about $1,906,000. Finally, Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth about $217,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MS shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. CICC Research raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $187.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Freedom Capital upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.75.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s disclosed 5.6% stake in quantum-computing company IonQ highlights continued participation in emerging technology themes and could create potential investment-banking or asset-management opportunities. Morgan Stanley Discloses 5.6% Stake in IonQ
• Positive Sentiment: A Zacks analysis characterizes Morgan Stanley as an attractive dividend stock, reinforcing the investment case for income-oriented shareholders. The company recently delivered a strong earnings beat, with revenue up 27.1% year over year, supporting confidence in its ability to maintain shareholder distributions. Why Morgan Stanley Is a Great Dividend Stock Right Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is reportedly among the banks arranging financing for Anthropic ahead of a potential initial public offering. The mandate could generate fees and strengthen the firm’s position in artificial-intelligence-related capital markets, although the article contains forward-looking and promotional claims that have not been independently verified. The Pre-IPO Playbook: How to Cash in on Anthropic Before the Bell
• Negative Sentiment: Former Morgan Stanley advisor Elizabeth Hobson has accused the firm of gender- and disability-based workplace discrimination, alleging inappropriate management pressure, confidentiality breaches and denial of medical leave. The claims are not established findings, but they create potential legal, compliance and reputational risks for investors. What Is Morgan Stanley Being Accused Of?

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS opened at $214.30 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $338.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.22. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $217.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $193.81. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $141.03 and a 1-year high of $232.25.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 15.65%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 37.19%.

Morgan Stanley 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.