Vestcor Inc Raises Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Vestcor Inc raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,364 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 897 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MS. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 104.7% during the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $142.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $228.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.13, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $136.61 and its 200 day moving average is $128.23. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $90.94 and a 1-year high of $145.48.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.33% and a net margin of 13.06%. The firm had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 1st that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Erste Group Bank raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $130.00 price target (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.25.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 25,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.81, for a total value of $3,576,759.23. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,662 shares in the company, valued at $17,988,234.22. The trade was a 16.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total value of $2,531,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 136,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,181,552.34. This trade represents a 11.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 in the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Morgan Stanley

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.