CNB Bank Trims Stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

CNB Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 192 shares during the quarter. CNB Bank’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC now owns 2,697 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Mason & Associates Inc raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Mason & Associates Inc now owns 3,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,313 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.6% during the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 3,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $391,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $136.22 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $128.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.15. The stock has a market cap of $219.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.70, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $83.09 and a 12 month high of $136.39.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. As a group, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. HSBC lowered Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $131.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.53.

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.