Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC Takes Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $223,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,451,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,585,561,000 after acquiring an additional 5,631,435 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,499,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,284,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,865,645 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 20,250,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,888,380,000 after acquiring an additional 517,446 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 20,197,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,883,392,000 after purchasing an additional 575,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $958,105,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 2.0 %

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $99.16 on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $103.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $96.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.81. The stock has a market cap of $161.15 billion, a PE ratio of 18.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.38.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.88%. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 6.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 6,954 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.61, for a total transaction of $692,687.94. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 46,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,609,353.14. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 6,954 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.61, for a total transaction of $692,687.94. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,609,353.14. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total transaction of $9,021,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 414,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,425,422.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 118,154 shares of company stock valued at $10,722,696 in the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $91.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Cfra lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.30.

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.