11,698 Shares in Morgan Stanley $MS Bought by North Dallas Bank & Trust Co.

North Dallas Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 11,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,648,000. Morgan Stanley comprises 1.2% of North Dallas Bank & Trust Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Gallagher Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.7% in the second quarter. Gallagher Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,420,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Great Diamond Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 13,361 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 12.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total transaction of $16,434,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 574,986 shares in the company, valued at $94,493,199.24. This represents a 14.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:MS opened at $178.57 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $151.23. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.33 and a one year high of $181.98. The firm has a market cap of $283.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. The company had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.40%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $173.38.

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.