Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Purchased by StoneX Group Inc.

StoneX Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 22.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 32,759 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,071 shares during the period. StoneX Group Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $4,118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MS. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS opened at $116.85 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $85.01 and a 1 year high of $142.03. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $129.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.11. The stock has a market cap of $188.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. The business had revenue of $16.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.03 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. Analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 46.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Erste Group Bank cut Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total transaction of $1,783,811.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 197,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,891,872.80. This represents a 6.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,076,654.40. This trade represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.