Alteri Wealth LLC Decreases Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Alteri Wealth LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 9.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 231 shares during the quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $256,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MS. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.4%

MS stock opened at $143.00 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $145.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $229.42 billion, a PE ratio of 16.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $135.37 and a 200-day moving average of $127.74.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The company had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.82 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.30, for a total value of $2,806,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 119,239 shares in the company, valued at $16,729,231.70. This trade represents a 14.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 399,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,325,688.65. This trade represents a 6.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 188,949 shares of company stock worth $25,737,084. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.25.

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.