Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Holdings Lowered by LGT Capital Partners LTD.

LGT Capital Partners LTD. lowered its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 216,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 14,677 shares during the period. LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $20,196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 306,637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,801,000 after purchasing an additional 22,095 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 61.9% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 6,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $608,000 after purchasing an additional 2,660 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 64.5% in the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 17,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,492,000 after purchasing an additional 6,696 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 66.9% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 626 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $94.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.21, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $87.31 and its 200-day moving average is $84.16. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $69.42 and a 1 year high of $95.57.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $12.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.77 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.36% and a net margin of 9.49%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 31st were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TheStreet raised Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $91.00 target price (down from $102.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $91.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.41, for a total transaction of $393,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 93,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,140,842.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.41, for a total transaction of $393,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 93,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,140,842.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total value of $8,730,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 350,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,555,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 208,155 shares of company stock valued at $18,149,314 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

About Morgan Stanley

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.