Novem Group Sells 119 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Novem Group decreased its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 119 shares during the quarter. Novem Group’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $356,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,869 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,785,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 55.9% in the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,265,000 after buying an additional 117,615 shares during the period. Tlwm increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 75.0% in the 1st quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,288,000 after buying an additional 26,763 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total value of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 399,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,325,688.65. The trade was a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total value of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 294,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. The trade was a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $160.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $94.33 and a 12 month high of $163.98. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $133.09. The stock has a market cap of $255.62 billion, a PE ratio of 18.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.33.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The business had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.82 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 45.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $142.00.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.