Raiffeisen Bank International AG Boosts Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Raiffeisen Bank International AG boosted its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 29.4% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 55,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,721 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $7,708,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,278.5% in the 2nd quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. now owns 130,328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,386,000 after purchasing an additional 120,874 shares in the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 36.2% in the 2nd quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,086 shares in the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 12.1% during the second quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $111,000. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total value of $16,434,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 574,986 shares in the company, valued at $94,493,199.24. This trade represents a 14.82% 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. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $159.69 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.50. The company has a market cap of $253.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.33. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $171.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. The firm had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.55% and a net margin of 13.85%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 31st. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 41.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Dbs Bank raised Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $168.23.

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.