Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.33, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $15.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 10.87%. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of MS stock opened at $90.08 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $69.42 and a 12-month high of $95.57. The company has a market capitalization of $146.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $88.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.93%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.13, for a total value of $841,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 323,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,215,213.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Morgan Stanley news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.93, for a total value of $4,396,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 400,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,172,000. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.13, for a total transaction of $841,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 323,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,215,213.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 201,155 shares of company stock valued at $17,564,394 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $340,000. SageView Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 255.5% during the fourth quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $951,000 after purchasing an additional 7,797 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $461,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 2,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Finally, O Dell Group LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MS. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $91.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.13.

About 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.