Robotti Robert Reduces Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Robotti Robert lessened its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Robotti Robert’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.33.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total transaction of $1,783,811.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 197,444 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,891,872.80. The trade was a 6.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 81,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,076,654.40. This trade represents a 17.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $122.17 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $85.01 and a 12 month high of $142.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.05 billion, a PE ratio of 15.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $130.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $123.50.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.68. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The business had revenue of $16.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 46.60%.

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.