UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 822,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,136 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley accounts for about 0.7% of UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd owned about 0.05% of Morgan Stanley worth $103,370,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Peoples Bank KS bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at 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 bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS stock opened at $122.17 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $197.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.39, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $123.50. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $85.01 and a fifty-two week high of $142.03.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The company had revenue of $16.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on MS shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.33.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

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