BLB&B Advisors LLC Sells 268 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

by · The Cerbat Gem

BLB&B Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Free Report) by 9.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 268 shares during the period. BLB&B Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $361,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% during the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 111.0% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. Abound Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 58.5% in the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 113.0% in the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price target for the company. Barclays increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.23.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS opened at $165.17 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $167.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $156.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $140.68. The firm has a market cap of $263.66 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.32.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.55% and a net margin of 13.85%.The firm had revenue of $18.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

Morgan Stanley Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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