Edge Capital Group LLC Purchases 7,992 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Edge Capital Group LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 232,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,992 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for about 1.1% of Edge Capital Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Edge Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $22,591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MS. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth about $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $102.47 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $69.42 and a 52 week high of $109.11. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $100.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.37.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.17. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company had revenue of $15.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.32 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.24 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were given a $0.925 dividend. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,549,326. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,549,326. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.06, for a total transaction of $21,012,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 150,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,759,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 252,000 shares of company stock valued at $26,546,370 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MS. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $99.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.73.

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.