Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC Grows Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 165.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,492 shares during the quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,512,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peoples Bank KS bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 138.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Planning Capital Management Corp grew 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 acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MS shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday. Hsbc Global Res lowered Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.40.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS stock 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $129.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.58. 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 company has a market cap of $221.97 billion, a PE ratio of 20.97, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

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.