Voya Investment Management LLC Trims Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Voya Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,449,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 20,946 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $548,279,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its position in 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 during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 91.9% during the third quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total value of $16,434,000.00. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of MS opened at $172.93 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $181.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $274.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $166.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $152.39.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 13.85%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on MS shares. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $184.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.77.

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.