Avanza Fonder AB Makes New $11.75 Million Investment in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Avanza Fonder AB bought a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 93,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $11,751,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Everpar Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 3,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC now owns 5,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $741,000 after buying an additional 1,232 shares during the period. Channel Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $201,000. Sterling Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth about $225,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $135,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE MS opened at $135.38 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $128.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $83.09 and a 1-year high of $136.54. The company has a market cap of $218.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. 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 report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.53.

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.