Analysts Set Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target at $103.06

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the twenty-one ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $103.06.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS stock opened at $119.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $194.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $102.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $98.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $69.42 and a 52-week high of $121.45.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.17. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 10.17%. The business had revenue of $15.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.32 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 6.95 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 43,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,549,326. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,451,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,585,561,000 after acquiring an additional 5,631,435 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 16.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 28,481,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,681,778,000 after purchasing an additional 3,981,528 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 20,228,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,886,292,000 after purchasing an additional 495,055 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,875,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,251,387,000 after purchasing an additional 303,654 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,597,493 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,029,970,000 after buying an additional 212,551 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

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.