Advisors Asset Management Inc. Sells 2,756 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,756 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.6% in the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 3,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $391,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.3% in the third quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $319,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. TFB Advisors LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.9% in the third quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 2,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the third quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 33,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,529,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lansing Street Advisors grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.8% in the third quarter. Lansing Street Advisors now owns 12,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,280,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other 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 directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $131.69 on Thursday. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $76.33 and a one year high of $135.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $212.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $114.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $104.68.

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 net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.27 billion. Research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $112.94.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.