CIBC Asset Management Inc Purchases 30,722 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 16.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 221,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,722 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $23,057,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,711,805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $491,159,000 after buying an additional 36,120 shares during the period. Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the first quarter worth about $2,660,000. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 17.8% during the second quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $561,000 after purchasing an additional 871 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 115.0% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 223,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,305,000 after purchasing an additional 119,633 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $87,558,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $134.06 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $111.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $103.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $215.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.40, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $76.33 and a 52 week high of $134.91.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 56.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on MS shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.29.

Morgan Stanley 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.