Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,711,805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 36,120 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.29% of Morgan Stanley worth $491,159,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MS. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MS shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. HSBC upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.24.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS opened at $131.43 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $108.19 and its 200-day moving average is $101.92. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $73.96 and a fifty-two week high of $133.52. The company has a market capitalization of $213.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.