Morgan Stanley $MS Stock: Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab Lowers Holdings

Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab reduced its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 204,470 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 25,488 shares during the quarter. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $38,457,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Danske Bank A S lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 964,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $181,403,000 after buying an additional 100,489 shares during the last quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors now owns 36,826 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,926,000 after buying an additional 2,080 shares during the period. Clearwater Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Clearwater Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. 10Elms LLP grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. 10Elms LLP now owns 285 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 37.5% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,148,000 after buying an additional 1,663 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS stock traded up $1.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $190.57. The stock had a trading volume of 4,446,766 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,403,792. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $152.80 and a 52 week high of $232.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $297.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $192.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $194.48.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $20.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.93 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.26% and a net margin of 15.63%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.80 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.83 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.51%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Director Judith Miscik sold 2,480 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.21, for a total value of $454,360.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 64,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,764,830.15. This represents a 3.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on MS. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Zacks Research downgraded Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. HSBC increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Morgan Stanley from $243.00 to $195.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $214.81.

Top Morgan Stanley Stories

Investors following MS have been watching these stories:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley agreed to acquire Vinyl Equity, a digital transfer agent, bringing share-transfer and recordkeeping capabilities in-house. The deal could deepen its wealth-management services and reduce reliance on outside providers, although financial benefits may take time to emerge. Why Is Morgan Stanley Bringing Transfer Agency In House?
• Positive Sentiment: One report noted that Morgan Stanley recorded a modest inflow while U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced broad withdrawals—a relative bright spot for its digital-asset offering. Bitcoin ETF Outflows
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary questioned whether the bank’s strong three-year share-price gains and current valuation are justified by returns on capital. Its tokenization and digital-transfer initiatives may create longer-term opportunities, but their effect on profitability remains uncertain. Can Morgan Stanley Justify Its Price After New Digital Moves?

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services company that provides investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individuals. Its Institutional Securities business offers services such as financial advisory, capital raising, sales and trading, and research. The company also provides financial planning, brokerage and banking services through its Wealth Management business, while its Investment Management business offers investment strategies and portfolio management to a range of clients.