Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Boosts Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target to $145.00

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its price objective lifted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $138.00 to $145.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 5.24% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.40.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS opened at $137.78 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $221.97 billion, a PE ratio of 20.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $129.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.58. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $83.09 and a 1 year high of $138.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MS. Peoples Bank KS bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 138.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Planning Capital Management Corp increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 115.1% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.