Weatherly Asset Management L. P. Invests $226,000 in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Weatherly Asset Management L. P. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 138.1% in the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 $26,891,872.80. This trade represents 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 available through this link. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at $11,076,654.40. This trade represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $137.17 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $220.98 billion, a PE ratio of 17.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $83.09 and a 52-week high of $142.03. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $130.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $117.46.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $16.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. HSBC downgraded Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $128.00 to $131.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 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 note on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $131.27.

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.