Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Given New $104.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its price objective lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $100.00 to $104.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. 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 lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $107.00 to $142.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $121.80.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $129.96 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $79.62 and a 12-month high of $136.24. The firm has a market cap of $209.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.35. The company’s 50-day moving average is $122.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.27 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. Research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.925 dividend. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $730,000. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 20.5% in the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 35,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,680,000 after acquiring an additional 6,000 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,850,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $881,493,000 after acquiring an additional 3,369,520 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 59,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,229,000 after acquiring an additional 5,024 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 85,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,907,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.