613 Shares in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Acquired by Livelsberger Financial Advisory

Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 613 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $64,000. Morgan Stanley accounts for about 1.3% of Livelsberger Financial Advisory’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, HSBC upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $107.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,549,326. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were 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 owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS traded down $2.99 on Monday, reaching $118.07. 3,461,617 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,100,863. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. The stock has a market cap of $191.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.53, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $103.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.38. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $69.42 and a 52-week high of $121.45.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.40%.

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.