MetLife Investment Management LLC Sells 9,774 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

MetLife Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 325,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,774 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $33,937,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 121.2% in the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 16,591 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,729,000 after buying an additional 9,090 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 382.4% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,597,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $166,555,000 after acquiring an additional 1,266,600 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 7,285.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 169,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,654,000 after purchasing an additional 167,064 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 73,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,700,000 after purchasing an additional 6,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cadence Bank bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at about $230,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE:MS opened at $131.56 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $76.33 and a 12-month high of $136.24. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $117.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $105.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.34.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion for 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $107.00 to $142.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $115.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

About Morgan Stanley

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.