Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. Cuts Stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. decreased its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,724 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter valued at about $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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $131.25 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $76.33 and a fifty-two week high of $136.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The company has a market cap of $211.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.34. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $117.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.78.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 10.64%. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $107.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.63.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the company’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 value of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 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.