EntryPoint Capital LLC Purchases New Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $122,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $958,105,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,451,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,585,561,000 after purchasing an additional 5,631,435 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $512,867,000. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,499,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,284,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,865,645 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focused Investors Fund L P acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth $159,714,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MS. Cfra boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $107.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.18.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value of $106,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 95,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,225,710.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Raja Akram sold 7,500 shares of the 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 87,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,266,848.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert H. Herz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.62, for a total value of $106,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 95,908 shares in the company, valued at $10,225,710.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 255,454 shares of company stock worth $26,870,683 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS traded up $1.60 on Friday, reaching $105.16. 2,331,840 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,629,090. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $69.42 and a twelve month high of $109.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of $99.50 and a 200-day moving average of $93.17. The company has a market capitalization of $170.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.86, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $15.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.32 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

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.