Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC Sells 149 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC cut its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,465 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 149 shares during the quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,147.6% in the 2nd 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 period. Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $95.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.24.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of MS opened at $119.37 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $69.42 and a 12 month high of $121.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $106.06 and its 200-day moving average is $100.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $194.00 billion, a PE ratio of 18.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96.

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total value of $7,150,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.