Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC Lowers Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 115 shares during the quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 645.8% during the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. FLC Capital Advisors purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at about $225,000. Lyell Wealth Management LP grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Lyell Wealth Management LP now owns 108,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,252,000 after acquiring an additional 4,909 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 4.2% during the second quarter. Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $804,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted 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. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.23.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS stock opened at $159.25 on Wednesday. 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 market capitalization of $254.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.33, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.89. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $166.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. The firm had revenue of $18.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.55%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

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

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.