Mason & Associates Inc Invests $322,000 in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Mason & Associates Inc purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 3,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $322,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 33,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,529,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.9% in the second quarter. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC now owns 12,319 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 4.3% during the third quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 24.4% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,344,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of Morgan Stanley 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 138,363 shares in the company, valued at $16,488,718.71. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Mandell Crawley sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.25, for a total value of $368,375.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at $4,549,326. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MS. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer downgraded Morgan Stanley from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 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. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.24.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE:MS traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $118.38. The stock had a trading volume of 1,148,964 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,071,821. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $192.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.36. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $69.42 and a 1-year high of $121.45. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $104.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.88.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $0.925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.40%.

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.