PFG Investments LLC Sells 2,312 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

PFG Investments LLC trimmed its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 10.7% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 19,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,312 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,257,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total value of $1,124,092.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 199,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,248,942.10. The trade was a 4.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 96,760 shares in the company, valued at $11,545,403.20. The trade was a 0.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 50,868 shares of company stock worth $6,019,548. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of MS opened at $132.56 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $90.94 and a twelve month high of $142.03. The stock has a market cap of $212.67 billion, a PE ratio of 15.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $123.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.21.

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

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MS. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.