Lake Street Advisors Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Lake Street Advisors Group LLC trimmed its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 34.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 23,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,274 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock traded down $0.47 during trading on Friday, hitting $118.70. 1,648,300 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,067,542. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $121.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $104.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.88.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company 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 of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 67.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.24.

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.