SCS Capital Management LLC Invests $4.99 Million in Morgan Stanley $MS

SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 42,791 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,992,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE MS opened at $152.22 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $94.09 and a 12 month high of $152.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $242.99 billion, a PE ratio of 17.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $144.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $129.96.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.20%. The firm had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback 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 buy up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 45.30%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total transaction of $2,806,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,729,231.70. This represents a 14.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.81, for a total transaction of $3,576,759.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 128,662 shares in the company, valued at $17,988,234.22. This represents a 16.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock worth $20,841,628. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on MS. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.25.

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.