Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,063 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,179,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MS. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,408 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $554,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $378,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 12,298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,546,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 13,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,671,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 2,908 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of MS stock opened at $123.75 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $132.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $121.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $84.43 and a twelve month high of $142.03. The company has a market capitalization of $199.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. The company had revenue of $16.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.03 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res lowered Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, HSBC lowered Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $128.00 to $131.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $131.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total value of $1,783,811.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 197,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,891,872.80. The trade was a 6.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,076,654.40. This represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.