Bank of America Raises Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target to $146.00

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its target price upped by equities researchers at Bank of America from $140.00 to $146.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Bank of America‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 14.21% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Citigroup raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target 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. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.80.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of MS stock opened at $127.83 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $205.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $83.09 and a 52-week high of $136.24. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $128.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $112.13.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. Research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,498,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $89,761,000. Peoples Bank KS bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. First County Bank CT grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. First County Bank CT now owns 5,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $659,000 after acquiring an additional 980 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $312,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.