Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.33 EPS

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.33, Briefing.com reports. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.87%. The company had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of MS stock opened at $90.23 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $69.42 and a 12-month high of $95.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $88.82 and its 200 day moving average is $84.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.43.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Cfra upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.93, for a total value of $4,396,500.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 400,000 shares in the company, valued at $35,172,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Morgan Stanley news, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $8,140,842.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.93, for a total transaction of $4,396,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 400,000 shares in the company, valued at $35,172,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 191,155 shares of company stock worth $16,723,094. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $340,000. SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 255.5% in the fourth quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $951,000 after acquiring an additional 7,797 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth approximately $461,000. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 2,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Finally, O Dell Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $71,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.