Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stock Price Down 5.8%

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)’s share price traded down 5.8% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $85.01 and last traded at $86.36. 16,234,872 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 89% from the average session volume of 8,581,578 shares. The stock had previously closed at $91.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. HSBC boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.48.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $140.33 billion, a PE ratio of 16.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The company’s 50 day moving average is $88.57 and its 200-day moving average is $84.65.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $12.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.77 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.49% and a return on equity of 10.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 31st were paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 30th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.94%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.76%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.56, for a total value of $584,920.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 97,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,158,297.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.56, for a total transaction of $584,920.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 97,634 shares in the company, valued at $8,158,297.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.93, for a total transaction of $4,396,500.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 400,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,172,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 208,155 shares of company stock worth $18,149,314. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 5,200.0% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc now owns 328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% 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.