Means Investment CO. Inc. Buys New Shares in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Means Investment CO. Inc. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,061 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% during the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $30,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $121.06 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $121.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $196.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.05, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $103.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.34.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 67.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 43,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,549,326. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,549,326. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 0.00 % 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MS. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer cut Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $107.56.

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.