Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Boosts Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. raised its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 81.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 293,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 132,122 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $52,245,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Key Morgan Stanley News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MS was highlighted in a Zacks note as a “top growth stock for the long term,” reinforcing the market’s growth narrative around Morgan Stanley. Why Morgan Stanley (MS) is a Top Growth Stock for the Long-Term
• Positive Sentiment: Large U.S. banks were broadly strong as investors waited for the Fed meeting, and Morgan Stanley was specifically mentioned among the bank stocks hitting records. Big Bank Stocks Hit Records Ahead of Fed Meeting
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent performance data show Morgan Stanley has already been benefiting from strong earnings, with the latest quarter beating expectations on both EPS and revenue, which supports the stock’s momentum but is not a fresh catalyst.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain constructive overall, including Morgan Stanley’s own overweight rating and several higher price targets across the Street, which helps underpin valuation expectations.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS opened at $225.32 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $129.93 and a 12-month high of $228.07. The stock has a market cap of $355.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.41, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $197.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $182.11.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.60 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on MS. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $196.00 to $214.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $179.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.35.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total value of $9,744,068.12. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at $53,209,159.78. This represents a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762 over the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company’s chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm’s primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.