Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Sells 3,780 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 28.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,780 shares during the period. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $980,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth $1,383,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 22.7% in the 1st quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 5,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $474,000 after buying an additional 931 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department now owns 2,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $219,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 16,295 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,534,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the period. Finally, Wallace Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Wallace Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS stock traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $118.08. The stock had a trading volume of 1,486,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,093,478. The business’s fifty day moving average is $103.85 and its 200-day moving average is $99.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. The firm has a market cap of $191.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.45, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $69.42 and a 1-year high of $121.45.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,549,326. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $95.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $107.56.

Morgan Stanley 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.