Edgar Lomax Co. VA Buys 197,165 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Edgar Lomax Co. VA lifted its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 116.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 366,710 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 197,165 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley accounts for 3.0% of Edgar Lomax Co. VA’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Edgar Lomax Co. VA’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $46,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS opened at $109.06 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $175.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.30. The business’s fifty day moving average is $119.53 and its 200-day moving average is $124.31. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $90.36 and a 52-week high of $142.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 14.39%. The business had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.43%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total value of $1,124,092.20. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 199,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,248,942.10. This represents a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Raja Akram sold 17,500 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.01, for a total transaction of $2,380,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 81,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,076,654.40. This represents a 17.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 40,665 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,079 in the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $144.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $130.50.

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.