Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Research Coverage Started at BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in a research report released on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $180.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on MS. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $152.92.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE MS opened at $157.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $251.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $150.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.33 and a one year high of $163.98.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. 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. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total value of $2,531,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,181,552.34. The trade was a 11.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. HCR Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.9% during the third quarter. HCR Wealth Advisors now owns 30,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,698,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares during the period. Morangie Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Morangie Management LLC now owns 35,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 94.8% during the 3rd quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,929,000 after purchasing an additional 8,965 shares during the last quarter. First Citizens Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Financial Corp now owns 9,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,587,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the period. Finally, Shorepoint Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth about $5,573,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.