Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Sold by Douglas Lane & Associates LLC

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC cut its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 676,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 54,594 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for approximately 1.6% of Douglas Lane & Associates LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $127,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MS. LifeGoal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the third quarter worth approximately $2,782,000. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.7% in the third quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 350,982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $66,013,000 after purchasing an additional 5,800 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 5.1% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 41,646 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,833,000 after acquiring an additional 2,016 shares during the period. Hamilton Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.3% in the third quarter. Hamilton Capital LLC now owns 6,415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,207,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Davis Capital Management increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 31.6% during the third quarter. Davis Capital Management now owns 312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $2.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $189.60. 1,587,133 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,142,871. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $151.84 and a one year high of $232.25. The stock has a market cap of $299.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.32, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $207.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $202.85.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The company had revenue of $21.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 37.19%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $240.00 to $223.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 25th. HSBC upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $235.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $243.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $219.43.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Options activity was notably bullish, with traders purchasing 26,930 MS call options, approximately 63% above average call volume. This suggests increased near-term speculative interest in the stock. Morgan Stanley options activity
• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer backed Morgan Stanley following its pullback, pointing to the company’s buyback authorization and describing the decline as an opportunity. The commentary may be supporting sentiment among retail investors. Jim Cramer backs Morgan Stanley
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s proposal to convert eight Eaton Vance municipal-bond mutual funds, totaling nearly $10 billion, into ETFs could improve product competitiveness, provide potential tax and trading advantages for shareholders, and strengthen the firm’s asset-management platform. Shareholder approval is required. Morgan Stanley municipal funds ETF conversions
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are focused on projections for Morgan Stanley’s September-quarter revenue, earnings, and key operating metrics. The report could clarify whether strong investment-banking and wealth-management trends continued, but the article does not provide a definitive earnings preview or estimate revision. Morgan Stanley Q3 earnings metric projections
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group downgraded Morgan Stanley from Buy to Hold, while TD Cowen initiated coverage with a Hold rating and a $210 price target. Although TD Cowen’s target implies upside, the Hold ratings signal limited conviction and may restrain gains. Morgan Stanley analyst rating changes

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm serving corporations, governments, financial institutions, individuals and other investors. The company provides investment banking and advisory services, including mergers and acquisitions advice, equity and debt underwriting, securities sales and trading, and corporate lending.

Through its Wealth Management business, Morgan Stanley offers financial planning, brokerage, investment advisory and banking services to individual investors, businesses and institutions.