Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target Increased to $107.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its target price lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $107.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an underweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, HSBC upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $107.56.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $121.06 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $196.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $69.42 and a twelve month high of $121.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $103.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $99.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total transaction of $368,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,549,326. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $205,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 9.8% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 112,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,758,000 after purchasing an additional 10,107 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the third quarter worth about $609,000. Buckley Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,689 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,010,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 75.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 89,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,367,000 after buying an additional 38,720 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

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.