CFM Wealth Partners LLC Boosts Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

CFM Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 8.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 847 shares during the quarter. CFM Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,618,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. McLean Asset Management Corp lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.5% in the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 5,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $707,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.4% in the second quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC now owns 3,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $458,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Lantz Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 4.7% in the second quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 1,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% in the second quarter. Register Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $695,000 after acquiring an additional 86 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 related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 43,566 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.97, for a total transaction of $6,141,499.02. Following the transaction, the insider owned 294,250 shares in the company, valued at $41,480,422.50. This trade represents a 12.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 399,105 shares in the company, valued at $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS opened at $158.12 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $150.62 and its 200-day moving average is $134.89. The stock has a market cap of $252.41 billion, a PE ratio of 17.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $163.98.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $16.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.15 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $152.92.

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.