The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 1.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,859,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 121,102 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley makes up 0.8% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.55% of Morgan Stanley worth $923,477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at $87,558,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 22,404,981 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,335,495,000 after acquiring an additional 590,872 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $43,850,000. Rokos Capital Management LLP purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $41,208,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,077,282 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $216,536,000 after purchasing an additional 343,234 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Morgan Stanley stock opened at $133.67 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company's fifty day moving average price is $116.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $215.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $76.33 and a 1 year high of $136.24.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.27 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.
A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. HSBC upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $118.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Morgan Stanley from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $114.81.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Morgan Stanley
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.
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.
Before you consider Morgan Stanley, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Morgan Stanley wasn't on the list.
While Morgan Stanley currently has a "Moderate Buy" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.