Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stake Raised by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 561,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,181 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $70,636,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $144.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.33.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:MS opened at $125.25 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $130.57 and its 200-day moving average is $123.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $85.01 and a 12 month high of $142.03. The firm has a market cap of $202.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.35.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The firm had revenue of $16.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total transaction of $1,783,811.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 197,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,891,872.80. This trade represents a 6.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total value of $2,380,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at $11,076,654.40. This represents a 17.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.