Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stake Lifted by German American Bancorp Inc.

German American Bancorp Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 77,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,738 shares during the quarter. German American Bancorp Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,070,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 50,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,238,000 after buying an additional 903 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 179,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,672,000 after acquiring an additional 9,076 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 23.3% in the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 18,238 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,901,000 after acquiring an additional 3,448 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.7% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 88,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,257,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 45,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,706,000 after purchasing an additional 7,151 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $131.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50-day moving average of $114.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $104.68. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $76.33 and a fifty-two week high of $135.51.

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

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Ten investment 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, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.94.

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.