Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Purchased by New England Research & Management Inc.

New England Research & Management Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 27.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,663 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for approximately 1.2% of New England Research & Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,451,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,585,561,000 after purchasing an additional 5,631,435 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,499,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,284,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,865,645 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 20,250,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,888,380,000 after purchasing an additional 517,446 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 20,197,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,883,392,000 after purchasing an additional 575,114 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at $958,105,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 6,954 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.61, for a total value of $692,687.94. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,609,353.14. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total value of $9,021,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 414,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,425,422.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Mandell Crawley sold 6,954 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.61, for a total value of $692,687.94. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,609,353.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 118,154 shares of company stock valued at $10,722,696 in the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE:MS opened at $97.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $69.42 and a fifty-two week high of $103.25. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $96.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.71. The stock has a market cap of $157.98 billion, a PE ratio of 17.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.38.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 9.57%. The company had revenue of $15.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MS. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. HSBC lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.30.

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.