Beirne Wealth Consulting Services LLC Invests $228,000 in Morgan Stanley $MS

Beirne Wealth Consulting Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

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

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.5%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $165.21 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $263.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $155.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $140.12. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $167.13.

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

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

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.