Liberty Wealth Management LLC Sells 49,406 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Liberty Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 96.8% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 49,406 shares during the quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 111.0% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the second 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 during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Abound Wealth Management boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 58.5% in the 2nd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on MS shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, 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 report on Wednesday, October 1st. Three 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.23.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS stock opened at $165.91 on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $166.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $155.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.32.

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

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.