Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reiterated by stock analysts at Credit Suisse Group in a research report issued on Saturday, July 22nd. They presently have a $49.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $47.00. Credit Suisse Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 3.68% from the stock’s current price.
Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Investment Research cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 11th. J P Morgan Chase & Co reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Monday, May 29th. Instinet reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target (down previously from $51.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Saturday, June 3rd. Compass Point cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $34.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, March 27th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Finally, Rafferty Capital Markets reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Saturday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $47.61.
Shares of Morgan Stanley (MS) traded up 1.54% during trading on Friday, reaching $47.99. 6,849,669 shares of the company were exchanged. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.30 billion, a PE ratio of 13.74 and a beta of 1.63. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $27.95 and a 1-year high of $48.45. The company’s 50-day moving average is $45.61 and its 200 day moving average is $44.14.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $9.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.05 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 16.77% and a return on equity of 9.86%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post $3.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 6.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
In other news, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 212,365 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.93, for a total value of $9,116,829.45. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 1,389,378 shares in the company, valued at $59,645,997.54. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman James P. Gorman sold 212,366 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.26, for a total transaction of $10,036,417.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,602,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,739,301.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 450,498 shares of company stock worth $20,356,050. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.
A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 9.1% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $101,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Invictus RG acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth $106,000. V Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $106,000. FTB Advisors Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 8.1% in the first quarter. FTB Advisors Inc. now owns 2,605 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the first quarter worth $120,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.65% of the company’s stock.
About Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley is a financial holding company. The Company’s segments include Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management. The Company’s Institutional Securities business segment provides investment banking, sales and trading, and other services to corporations, governments, financial institutions and high-to-ultra high net worth clients.
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