Madison Asset Management LLC Invests $7.90 Million in Morgan Stanley $MS

Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 37,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,898,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $78,825,883,310,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth about $2,736,648,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,040,227,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,917,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,648,354,000 after acquiring an additional 3,364,080 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 142.4% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,122,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $511,723,000 after acquiring an additional 1,833,844 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MS. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $243.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Monday, July 20th. Dbs Bank increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.75.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.5%

NYSE:MS opened at $214.30 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $141.03 and a 1-year high of $232.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $338.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.32, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.22. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $217.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.81.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 15.65%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.19%.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s disclosed 5.6% stake in quantum-computing company IonQ highlights continued participation in emerging technology themes and could create potential investment-banking or asset-management opportunities. Morgan Stanley Discloses 5.6% Stake in IonQ
• Positive Sentiment: A Zacks analysis characterizes Morgan Stanley as an attractive dividend stock, reinforcing the investment case for income-oriented shareholders. The company recently delivered a strong earnings beat, with revenue up 27.1% year over year, supporting confidence in its ability to maintain shareholder distributions. Why Morgan Stanley Is a Great Dividend Stock Right Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is reportedly among the banks arranging financing for Anthropic ahead of a potential initial public offering. The mandate could generate fees and strengthen the firm’s position in artificial-intelligence-related capital markets, although the article contains forward-looking and promotional claims that have not been independently verified. The Pre-IPO Playbook: How to Cash in on Anthropic Before the Bell
• Negative Sentiment: Former Morgan Stanley advisor Elizabeth Hobson has accused the firm of gender- and disability-based workplace discrimination, alleging inappropriate management pressure, confidentiality breaches and denial of medical leave. The claims are not established findings, but they create potential legal, compliance and reputational risks for investors. What Is Morgan Stanley Being Accused Of?

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company’s chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm’s primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.