Marathon Capital Management Sells 333 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Marathon Capital Management lessened its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 333 shares during the period. Marathon Capital Management’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position 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 valued at $3,585,561,000 after acquiring an additional 5,631,435 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 28,481,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,681,778,000 after purchasing an additional 3,981,528 shares during the last quarter. Focused Investors Fund L P bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $159,714,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 600.8% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,301,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $122,581,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,061,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $844,973,000 after buying an additional 979,250 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer cut Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.73.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $104.60 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $69.42 and a 1 year high of $109.11. The company’s 50-day moving average is $100.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. The company has a market cap of $169.99 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.37.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $15.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.32 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 11.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.24 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.54%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total transaction of $106,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 95,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,225,710.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Morgan Stanley news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total value of $797,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 87,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,266,848.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value of $106,620.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 95,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,225,710.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 252,000 shares of company stock valued at $26,546,370. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.