Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Acquired by First County Bank CT

First County Bank CT increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the quarter. First County Bank CT’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 600.8% during the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,301,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $122,581,000 after buying an additional 1,116,058 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $87,558,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth $43,850,000. Rokos Capital Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth $41,208,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 19.8% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,077,282 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $216,536,000 after acquiring an additional 343,234 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $135.17 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $76.33 and a fifty-two week high of $135.57. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.89. The stock has a market cap of $217.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.94.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.