Associated Banc Corp Has $388,000 Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Associated Banc Corp trimmed its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 11.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 340 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $388,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 56.3% in the second quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 112,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,901,000 after acquiring an additional 40,647 shares in the last quarter. Columbia Bank boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Columbia Bank now owns 14,441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,038,000 after purchasing an additional 588 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 13,986.1% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 45,498 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,409,000 after purchasing an additional 45,175 shares in the last quarter. RiverFront Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth approximately $239,000. Finally, Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 16.1% in the second quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 11,437 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,611,000 after buying an additional 1,585 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total value of $16,434,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 574,986 shares in the company, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. The trade was a 14.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $165.37 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The stock has a market cap of $262.83 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.33. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $171.77. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $160.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $147.24.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.55%. The firm had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.88 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 41.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $122.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Dbs Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.38.

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.