Stonegate Investment Group LLC Sells 1,335 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Stonegate Investment Group LLC cut its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,016 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,335 shares during the period. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,391,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at approximately $369,000. Ropes Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 57.9% in the third quarter. Ropes Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 1,753 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at about $580,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 30.1% during the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 38,145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,115,000 after acquiring an additional 8,830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 91.5% in the third quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 10,581 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $864,000 after acquiring an additional 5,055 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.4 %

NYSE MS traded down $1.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $90.83. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,859,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,641,185. The firm has a market capitalization of $147.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.43. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $89.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $69.42 and a twelve month high of $95.57.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.87%. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.70 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 6.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.30.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Charles Aubrey Smith III sold 11,200 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.09, for a total transaction of $1,009,008.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 126,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,368,457.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Charles Aubrey Smith III sold 11,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.09, for a total value of $1,009,008.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 126,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,368,457.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 26,655 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $25,009,143.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 237,855 shares of company stock valued at $21,084,057 over the last ninety days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.