Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Key Financial Inc

Key Financial Inc lowered its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 6.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 166 shares during the quarter. Key Financial Inc’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $241,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5,200.0% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. RVW Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 77.3% during the third quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc now owns 328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 810.8% during the third quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total transaction of $8,730,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 350,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,555,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total transaction of $8,730,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 350,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,555,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.41, for a total transaction of $393,345.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 93,134 shares in the company, valued at $8,140,842.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 208,155 shares of company stock valued at $18,149,314. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. TheStreet upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.13.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS traded up $0.94 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $90.08. 9,533,416 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,944,144. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $88.65 and its 200 day moving average is $84.78. The stock has a market cap of $146.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $69.42 and a 1-year high of $95.57.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.49% and a return on equity of 10.36%. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.76%.

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.