HM Payson & Co. Increases Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

HM Payson & Co. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 24.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,439 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 6,645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $693,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the third quarter worth $486,000. Financial Advocates Investment Management purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at $274,000. Oak Harvest Investment Services raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 4.8% in the third quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services now owns 141,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,699,000 after purchasing an additional 6,473 shares during the period. Finally, SteelPeak Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 166.9% during the 3rd quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 57,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,977,000 after purchasing an additional 35,852 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.4 %

MS stock opened at $116.23 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $106.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.69, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $70.27 and a fifty-two week high of $121.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 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 report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $109.24.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.