Korea Investment CORP Lowers Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Korea Investment CORP trimmed its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 945,678 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 101,357 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.06% of Morgan Stanley worth $133,208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 111.0% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% during the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Abound Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.5% in the 2nd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.6%

MS stock opened at $168.15 on Thursday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $160.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $147.38. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $94.33 and a 12 month high of $171.77. The company has a market cap of $267.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.25, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.33.

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

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 41.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $122.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In related news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. This represents a 14.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.19% 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.