Mattson Financial Services LLC Sells 213 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Mattson Financial Services LLC cut its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 213 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley makes up about 1.1% of Mattson Financial Services LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Mattson Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,291,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MS. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the 2nd 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 during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MS shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer cut Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $99.00 to $95.00 in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $103.06.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value of $106,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 95,908 shares in the company, valued at $10,225,710.96. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.54, for a total value of $4,261,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 442,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,146,293.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total transaction of $106,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 95,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,225,710.96. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 252,000 shares of company stock worth $26,546,370 in the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $107.51 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $98.08. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $69.42 and a 1 year high of $109.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $174.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced 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 the consensus estimate of $14.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7.03 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.40%.

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.