Sivia Capital Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 2,299 Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,299 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Paralel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.1% during the third quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC now owns 21,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 13.0% during the third quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 3,632 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 44.2% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 82,236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,716,000 after purchasing an additional 25,195 shares during the period. Wealthsource Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 9.9% during the third quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC now owns 6,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the third quarter worth $8,946,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Charles Aubrey Smith III sold 11,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.09, for a total value of $1,009,008.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 126,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,368,457.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total transaction of $9,021,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 414,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,425,422.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles Aubrey Smith III sold 11,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.09, for a total transaction of $1,009,008.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 126,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,368,457.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 118,154 shares of company stock valued at $10,722,696. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MS. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. TheStreet upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. HSBC increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Cfra boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.30.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.6 %

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $97.04 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $95.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $157.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.68, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.38. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $69.42 and a 52-week high of $103.25.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.88%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

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.