Evolve Private Wealth LLC Increases Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Evolve Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 21.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,388 shares during the quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,212,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MS. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. 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. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,224,370.48. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total transaction of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 169,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Citizens Jmp restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of 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 boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $206.35.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is reportedly weighing an expansion in Dallas through a $1.33 billion office-building deal, which could signal continued growth in its Texas footprint and long-term investment in a major financial hub. Morgan Stanley Weighs Expansion to Dallas With $1.33 Billion Office-Building Deal
• Positive Sentiment: Financial stocks were generally moving higher in afternoon trading, providing a favorable backdrop for Morgan Stanley and other large banks and brokers. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Rise in Afternoon Trading
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also broader market chatter about Morgan Stanley’s crypto ETF fee strategy, which may be keeping the company in investor focus, though it is not a direct stock catalyst by itself. Morgan Stanley targets crypto ETF fee crown – while Franklin Templeton wants your stock dividends buying bitcoin

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $227.19 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $358.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $130.90 and a 52-week high of $230.47. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $200.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $183.29.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.60 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Morgan Stanley Company 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.