Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) PT Raised to $105.00 at Evercore ISI

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its target price hoisted by investment analysts at Evercore ISI from $102.00 to $105.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 4.79% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on MS. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Bank of America upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.48.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS opened at $100.20 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $96.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $91.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $162.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.38. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $69.42 and a 12-month high of $103.25.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 9.57%. The company had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.70 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 17,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,639,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC now owns 373,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,846,000 after buying an additional 27,845 shares during the period. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Evercore Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Evercore Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,274,605 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $118,857,000 after acquiring an additional 48,812 shares during the period. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Morgan Stanley

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.