Morgan Stanley $MS Stock Holdings Lowered by Diversified Trust Co

Diversified Trust Co lowered its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 6.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,343 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,653 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $11,725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Partners Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 115.1% during the 3rd quarter. Partners Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,079 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 3,253 shares in the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,854,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 279,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,452,000 after buying an additional 30,010 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 294,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,468,000 after buying an additional 28,877 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 13.4% in the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,422,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $398,635,000 after buying an additional 287,056 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS opened at $190.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $152.80 and a twelve month high of $232.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $297.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50 day moving average of $192.75 and a 200-day moving average of $194.48.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.10. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.63% and a return on equity of 19.26%. The business had revenue of $20.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.80 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th were paid a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 36.51%.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

Here are a few of the latest headlines about MS:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley agreed to acquire Vinyl Equity, a digital transfer agent, bringing share-transfer and recordkeeping capabilities in-house. The deal could deepen its wealth-management services and reduce reliance on outside providers, although financial benefits may take time to emerge. Why Is Morgan Stanley Bringing Transfer Agency In House?
• Positive Sentiment: One report noted that Morgan Stanley recorded a modest inflow while U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced broad withdrawals—a relative bright spot for its digital-asset offering. Bitcoin ETF Outflows
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary questioned whether the bank’s strong three-year share-price gains and current valuation are justified by returns on capital. Its tokenization and digital-transfer initiatives may create longer-term opportunities, but their effect on profitability remains uncertain. Can Morgan Stanley Justify Its Price After New Digital Moves?

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $205.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $243.00 to $195.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Zacks Research cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, HSBC upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $214.81.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Judith Miscik sold 2,480 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.21, for a total transaction of $454,360.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 64,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,764,830.15. The trade was a 3.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services company that provides investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individuals. Its Institutional Securities business offers services such as financial advisory, capital raising, sales and trading, and research. The company also provides financial planning, brokerage and banking services through its Wealth Management business, while its Investment Management business offers investment strategies and portfolio management to a range of clients.