Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Bought by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,855 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $9,686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 141.0% in the first quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,671 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,005,000 after buying an additional 6,244 shares during the period. Bornite Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at $23,540,000. Caxton Associates LP purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth $2,189,000. Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth $2,660,000. Finally, Dynasty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,927,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $134.69 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $76.33 and a 1-year high of $135.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $116.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.23.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. On average, research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.94.

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.