May Hill Capital LLC Cuts Stock Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

May Hill Capital LLC cut its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 92 shares during the period. May Hill Capital LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $300,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 111.0% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% during the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.0% during the first quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.5% during the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS opened at $165.91 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $155.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $139.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The company has a market capitalization of $264.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.32. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $166.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.55% and a net margin of 13.85%.The company had revenue of $18.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 41.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $122.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.23.

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.