Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. Cuts Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. decreased its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 41,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 606 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for 1.1% of Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $5,813,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 111.0% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Abound Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.5% during the 2nd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total value of $16,434,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 574,986 shares in the company, valued at $94,493,199.24. This trade represents a 14.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $168.23.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.7%

MS opened at $162.31 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $94.33 and a 12 month high of $167.13. The company has a market cap of $257.96 billion, a PE ratio of 16.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.33. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $158.11 and a 200 day moving average of $143.21.

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

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 41.03%.

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.