Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Bought by Richardson Financial Services Inc.

Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 18.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $94,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 34.3% during the 1st quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,869 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,785,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter valued at approximately $57,000. AGF Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 55.9% during the first quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 327,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,265,000 after acquiring an additional 117,615 shares during the last quarter. Tlwm raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the first quarter. Tlwm now owns 13,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 75.0% during the first quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,288,000 after acquiring an additional 26,763 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total transaction of $2,531,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 136,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,181,552.34. This trade represents a 11.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the sale, the insider owned 294,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,480,422.50. This represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $152.07 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $163.98. The stock has a market cap of $242.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.22, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $151.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $135.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.15 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.20%. The business’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 45.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.85.

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.