Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Sells 11,681 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 80.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,681 shares during the period. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at $26,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.5 %

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $104.11 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $169.20 billion, a PE ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $100.11 and a 200 day moving average of $97.42. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $69.42 and a one year high of $109.11.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 67.40%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.06, for a total transaction of $21,012,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,759,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total transaction of $797,775.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 87,119 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,266,848.03. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.06, for a total value of $21,012,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,759,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 252,000 shares of company stock worth $26,546,370 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $99.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. 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 company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.73.

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.