Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co reduced its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 295,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 23,288 shares during the quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $28,711,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Waddell & Associates LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 3,178 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 61.1% in the second quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 3,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 1,371 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 49,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,783,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 131.3% during the 2nd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 44,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,309,000 after buying an additional 25,169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 18,827.6% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 236,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,953,000 after buying an additional 234,969 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE MS traded down $2.97 during trading on Friday, reaching $96.59. 9,246,905 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,272,226. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $100.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.92. The company has a market capitalization of $156.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.37. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $69.42 and a twelve month high of $109.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $15.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.32 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 11.85%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.83%. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.06, for a total transaction of $21,012,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,759,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.06, for a total value of $21,012,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 150,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,759,000. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value of $106,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 95,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,225,710.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 252,000 shares of company stock worth $26,546,370 in the last three months. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.45.

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.