Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich Sells 34,983 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich lessened its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 74.7% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 34,983 shares during the quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,479,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Purpose Unlimited Inc. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 143.4% in the second quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Atlatl Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS opened at $217.31 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $141.03 and a 12-month high of $232.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $342.76 billion, a PE ratio of 17.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $216.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.08.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 EPS for the current year.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders 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 represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 37.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on MS shares. Freedom Capital upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. HSBC increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Barclays raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.75.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan increased their holdings of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs during the second quarter and added exposure to Solana and XRP products. The activity reinforces Morgan Stanley’s expansion into digital-asset products, which could support future fee and client-asset growth. Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan load up on crypto ETFs
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is among five banks advising Carlyle-backed Quest Global on a potential India IPO of up to $1 billion. The mandate could generate advisory and underwriting fees while highlighting the firm’s international capital-markets franchise. Quest Global selects banks for India IPO
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised its earnings estimates for Morgan Stanley, providing a supportive analyst signal following the company’s strong recent quarterly results. Erste Group lifts Morgan Stanley earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley adopted a more constructive view of U.S. IT hardware, citing “chipflation” and faster enterprise spending. The research may benefit the firm’s advisory and trading activity, but it is not a direct change to Morgan Stanley’s earnings outlook. Morgan Stanley turns bullish on IT hardware
• Negative Sentiment: A critical report on Morgan Stanley’s direct-lending business raised concerns about recent results and credit-market risks. Although details were limited, the negative coverage may weigh on sentiment toward the firm’s private-credit operations. Morgan Stanley direct lending results

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.