Mason & Associates Inc Purchases 90 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Mason & Associates Inc lifted its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the quarter. Mason & Associates Inc’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC now owns 2,697 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,313 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $794,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 3,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $391,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Omnia Family Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the third quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $133.50 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $83.09 and a 1 year high of $136.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $128.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.02. The stock has a market cap of $215.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.77%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. HSBC lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $131.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.07.

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.