Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. Has $628,000 Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. lessened its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 417 shares during the period. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $628,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Chelsea Counsel Co. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Arlington Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1,611.8% during the 1st quarter. Arlington Partners LLC now owns 291 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 208.3% during the 1st quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 897.4% during the 1st quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 389 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.09% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MS traded up $0.53 during trading on Monday, hitting $88.94. 2,254,270 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,345,178. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $74.67 and a 1-year high of $100.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $87.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market cap of $147.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.67, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.35.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.04. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 10.99%. The company had revenue of $13.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 30th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 31st were paid a $0.85 dividend. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 28th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, CEO James P. Gorman sold 125,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.19, for a total value of $11,898,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,011,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $96,269,930.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CFO Raja Akram sold 13,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.00, for a total transaction of $1,242,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 82,984 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,634,528. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James P. Gorman sold 125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.19, for a total value of $11,898,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,011,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $96,269,930.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 369,100 shares of company stock valued at $34,634,996. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $103.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Odeon Capital Group raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $94.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 12th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 18th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $95.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.22.

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.