Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Sold by Institute for Wealth Management LLC.

Institute for Wealth Management LLC. decreased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 17,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 171 shares during the period. Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,172,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MS. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 138.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Planning Capital Management Corp increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 115.1% in the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $140.05 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $83.09 and a 12-month high of $141.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.36. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $115.67.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.68. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 12.48%. The company had revenue of $16.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.52 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. HSBC lowered Morgan Stanley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the company from $128.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.27.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 13,097 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total value of $1,783,811.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 197,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,891,872.80. The trade was a 6.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total transaction of $2,380,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 81,440 shares in the company, valued at $11,076,654.40. The trade was a 17.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.