Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Director Sells $7,150,200.00 in Stock

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred 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 represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $121.07 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $103.38 and a 200 day moving average of $99.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $196.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.05, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $121.45.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $15.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.32 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.40%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the third quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 33,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,529,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC now owns 12,319 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,197,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 24.4% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.8% in the third quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,344,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $107.56.

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.