Optas LLC Purchases 568 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Optas LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 24.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. Optas LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 16.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 28,481,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,681,778,000 after purchasing an additional 3,981,528 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 600.8% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,301,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $122,581,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116,058 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth about $87,558,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 433.4% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 779,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $73,392,000 after purchasing an additional 633,319 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth about $43,850,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $116.85 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $107.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $101.34. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $71.65 and a 52 week high of $121.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $189.90 billion, a PE ratio of 17.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.34. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. HSBC raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.24.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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.