Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Purchased by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,253 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 991 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,678,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 138.1% in the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Planning Capital Management Corp lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 115.1% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $135.80 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $83.09 and a twelve month high of $136.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The company has a market capitalization of $218.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $128.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.15.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MS shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.07.

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.