Conning Inc. Has $39.16 Million Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Conning Inc. increased its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 375,659 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,361 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley comprises about 1.3% of Conning Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $39,159,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bayesian Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,660,000. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 17.8% in the second quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $561,000 after acquiring an additional 871 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 115.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 223,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,305,000 after acquiring an additional 119,633 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 96.6% during the first quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 33,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,164,000 after acquiring an additional 16,507 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at $87,558,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE MS opened at $116.85 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $107.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $101.26. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $71.65 and a one year high of $121.45. The firm has a market cap of $189.90 billion, a PE ratio of 17.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Oppenheimer downgraded Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.24.

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.