Sciencast Management LP Buys Shares of 8,340 Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Sciencast Management LP bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 8,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $700,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Windsor Group LTD raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. Windsor Group LTD now owns 2,820 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. American National Bank raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. American National Bank now owns 5,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $485,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC now owns 32,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,777,000 after acquiring an additional 1,221 shares in the last quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrive Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth about $217,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.09% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of MS stock opened at $89.28 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $87.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $74.67 and a 1 year high of $100.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.65, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.35.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $13.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.02 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 10.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 31st were issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 28th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.81%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.96%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, June 30th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. HSBC started coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, September 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $99.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $91.00 in a research note on Friday, July 7th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.22.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Edward N. Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.33, for a total value of $9,433,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 604,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,055,028.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Charles Aubrey Smith III sold 5,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.41, for a total value of $517,496.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 136,513 shares in the company, valued at $12,615,166.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward N. Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.33, for a total transaction of $9,433,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 604,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,055,028.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 369,100 shares of company stock valued at $34,634,996. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Morgan Stanley Profile

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.