Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target Raised to $108.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its price objective raised by Royal Bank of Canada from $91.00 to $108.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on MS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Oppenheimer cut Morgan Stanley from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $101.18.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of MS stock opened at $102.09 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $99.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.88. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $69.42 and a 1 year high of $109.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $165.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.60, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.38.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 10.17%. The business had revenue of $15.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. 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 6.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 61.93%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total value of $797,775.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 87,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,266,848.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s 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 owns 150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,759,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total value of $797,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 87,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,266,848.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 255,454 shares of company stock valued at $26,870,683. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MS. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,702,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 33,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,215,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 10,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 1,182 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5.5% during the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 3,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $307,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.1% in the second quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 30,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,954,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.