Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Sowell Financial Services LLC

Sowell Financial Services LLC lowered its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,221 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,528,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 138.1% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $119.12 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $85.01 and a 1 year high of $142.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $132.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $122.12.

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

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $107.00 to $142.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. HSBC downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $131.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target 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. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $131.27.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley news, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total value of $1,783,811.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 197,444 shares in the company, valued at $26,891,872.80. The trade was a 6.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% 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.