Advocate Group LLC Sells 3,916 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Advocate Group LLC trimmed its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 76,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,916 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for 1.6% of Advocate Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ethic Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 162,269 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,400,000 after acquiring an additional 42,743 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 499,554 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $62,804,000 after purchasing an additional 14,283 shares during the period. Pamalican Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,513,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,686,000. Finally, Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 112.0% during the 4th quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 39,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,019,000 after buying an additional 21,090 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE MS opened at $132.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $90.94 and a fifty-two week high of $142.03. The company has a market cap of $212.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $123.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.25.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 12.98%. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.43%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $4,800,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 335,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This represents a 10.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total value of $95,456.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 96,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,545,403.20. This represents a 0.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548 in the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on MS. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $133.62.

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.