2,106 Shares in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Acquired by Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,106 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of MS opened at $131.25 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $76.33 and a 52 week high of $136.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $117.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 56.32%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.63.

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.