Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $17.42 Million Stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 18.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 167,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,043 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $17,415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $134.69 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $216.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.34. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $116.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $76.33 and a one year high of $135.67.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on MS. Barclays lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target 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. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.