Banco Santander S.A. Cuts Stock Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

22 Nov 2024, 07:28 by Teresa Graham · The Cerbat Gem

Banco Santander S.A. cut its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Free Report) by 1.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 90,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,225 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $9,474,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $135.17 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $76.33 and a twelve month high of $135.57. The firm has a market cap of $217.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.94.

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