Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. Increases Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 443,287 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $46,208,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% during the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of MS stock traded up $1.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $129.53. 6,979,341 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,605,413. The firm has a market cap of $208.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $73.96 and a 1 year high of $133.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $109.23 and a 200 day moving average of $102.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.86%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MS. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $95.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.24.

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It operates through Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments.