Carret Asset Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Carret Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 180 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,914,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 5,200.0% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 77.3% during the third quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc now owns 328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 123.2% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Front Row Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 220.6% during the third quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.19, for a total value of $2,324,049.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 286,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,009,143.65. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.19, for a total transaction of $2,324,049.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 286,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,009,143.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.41, for a total value of $393,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 93,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,140,842.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 302,355 shares of company stock worth $26,753,102. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of MS traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $93.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,100,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,804,559. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $69.42 and a 12-month high of $95.57. The stock has a market cap of $152.68 billion, a PE ratio of 17.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company’s 50 day moving average is $89.22 and its 200 day moving average is $85.20.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.87% and a net margin of 9.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet raised Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $91.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. UBS Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.07.

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.