HTLF Bank Takes $2.39 Million Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

HTLF Bank acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 25,605 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,388,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 18,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,543,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares in the last quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $849,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 12,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,046,000 after purchasing an additional 1,785 shares in the last quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $615,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on MS shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Cfra lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price target (down from $94.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $97.79.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE:MS traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $91.31. The stock had a trading volume of 2,054,590 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,822,201. The company has a market capitalization of $148.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.43. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $69.42 and a 1-year high of $95.57. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $88.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 10.87% and a net margin of 9.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 6.53 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.72%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.19, for a total value of $2,324,049.45. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 286,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,009,143.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Morgan Stanley news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.30, for a total value of $8,730,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 350,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,555,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.19, for a total value of $2,324,049.45. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 286,835 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,009,143.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 191,155 shares of company stock valued at $16,723,094 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Profile

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.