UMB Bank n.a. Sells 6,709 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

UMB Bank n.a. lowered its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 166,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,709 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $26,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 97.4% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 22,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,644,000 after buying an additional 11,311 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 3.8% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 581,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $92,407,000 after buying an additional 21,458 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 87,236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,867,000 after acquiring an additional 9,345 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 45.3% in the third quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 30,854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,905,000 after purchasing an additional 9,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at $5,417,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $182.81 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $192.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $290.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $179.18 and a 200 day moving average of $162.57.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on MS. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $211.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total value of $5,569,194.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 280,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,501,921.22. This represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.08, for a total transaction of $1,547,680.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 119,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,690,826.24. This represents a 6.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights Morgan Stanley’s wealth & asset-management business as a durable, recurring-revenue engine that now accounts for the majority of firm revenues — a structural strength that supports more predictable fee income and helps justify a higher multiple for MS. MS Wealth & Asset Management Moat
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat/AmericanBankingNews notes the brokerage consensus on MS is “Moderate Buy,” reflecting broad analyst support after the company’s January quarter results and forward outlook — analyst backing tends to support upward price moves. Consensus Recommendation: Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: President Trump’s reported selection of former Fed governor Kevin Warsh as the nominee for Fed chair (Warsh has Morgan Stanley banking ties) is being discussed in the market; any perceived “connection” is indirect and more reputational than financial for MS, so impact is uncertain/likely muted. Warsh Named as Fed Chair
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes and commentary by Morgan Stanley strategists (e.g., observations on bond-market dislocations and sector calls) underline the firm’s active research and trading flow — positive for fee and trading revenue over time but not an immediate catalyst. Morgan Stanley Exec on Bond Market
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: MS insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares at about $182.61 (~$6.0M). The trade reduces his stake materially (reported ~8.45% of his holdings) — sizable insider sales can create short-term selling pressure or signal personal liquidity needs, though one sale alone is not definitive about firm fundamentals. Insider Sale Filing

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company’s chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm’s primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.