Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY Lowers Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY trimmed its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 71,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,169 shares during the period. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $7,412,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MS. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $3.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $107.88. 5,609,161 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,093,391. The firm has a market cap of $175.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $69.42 and a twelve month high of $109.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. The business 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 was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 a positive change 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 3.43%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MS. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. HSBC upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.68.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chairman now owns 150,000 shares in the company, valued at $15,759,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chairman now owns 150,000 shares in the company, valued at $15,759,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value of $106,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 95,908 shares in the company, valued at $10,225,710.96. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 252,000 shares of company stock worth $26,546,370 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.