Krilogy Financial LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Krilogy Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,170 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,907,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 138.1% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Planning Capital Management Corp lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 115.1% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MS. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Hsbc Global Res lowered Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $129.40.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.5 %

MS opened at $137.78 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $83.09 and a 12 month high of $138.08. 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $129.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.58. The company has a market cap of $221.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. On average, equities analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.32%.

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.