The stock price of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) has surged by 0.71 when compared to previous closing price of 93.50, but the company has seen a 0.81% gain in its stock price over the last five trading sessions. Reuters reported 2024-03-28 that A U.S. judge on Thursday dismissed seven lawsuits by investors who accused Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Morgan Stanley of misconduct that fueled the rapid March 2021 collapse of Bill Hwang’s $36 billion firm Archegos Capital Management.
Is It Worth Investing in Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) Right Now?
The price-to-earnings ratio for Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is 18.20x, which is above its average ratio. Moreover, the 36-month beta value for MS is 1.42. Analysts have varying opinions on the stock, with 5 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 4 as “overweight,” 16 as “hold,” and 0 as “sell.”
The public float for MS is 1.25B and currently, short sellers hold a 1.31% of that float. On April 01, 2024, MS’s average trading volume was 8.87M shares.
MS’s Market Performance
MS stock saw an increase of 0.81% in the past week, with a monthly gain of 9.42% and a quarterly increase of 0.53%. The volatility ratio for the week is 1.65%, and the volatility levels for the last 30 days are 2.15% for Morgan Stanley (MS). The simple moving average for the past 20 days is 5.78% for MS’s stock, with a 10.83% simple moving average for the past 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of MS
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for MS stocks, with Keefe Bruyette repeating the rating for MS by listing it as a “Mkt Perform.” The predicted price for MS in the upcoming period, according to Keefe Bruyette is $91 based on the research report published on January 17, 2024 of the current year 2024.
JP Morgan, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see MS reach a price target of $87, previously predicting the price at $94. The rating they have provided for MS stocks is “Neutral” according to the report published on January 17th, 2024.
HSBC Securities gave a rating of “Hold” to MS, setting the target price at $96 in the report published on January 09th of the current year.
MS Trading at 7.90% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought MS to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -1.48% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 2.15%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 1.65%, as shares surge +9.44% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading +11.55% upper at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, MS rose by +0.81%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by +7.69% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $89.42. In addition, Morgan Stanley saw 0.98% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further gains.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at MS starting from GORMAN JAMES P, who sale 100,000 shares at the price of $87.30 back on Feb 12 ’24. After this action, GORMAN JAMES P now owns 350,000 shares of Morgan Stanley, valued at $8,730,220 using the latest closing price.
SAPERSTEIN ANDREW M, the Co-President of Morgan Stanley, sale 26,655 shares at $87.19 during a trade that took place back on Feb 12 ’24, which means that SAPERSTEIN ANDREW M is holding 286,835 shares at $2,324,092 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for MS
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.21 for the present operating margin
- 0.56 for the gross margin
The net margin for Morgan Stanley stands at 0.18. The total capital return value is set at 0.01. Equity return is now at value 9.12, with 0.76 for asset returns.
Based on Morgan Stanley (MS), the company’s capital structure generated 0.74 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at -0.12. The debt to equity ratio resting at 2.79. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 0.25.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 15.93 billion with net debt to EBITDA at 17.01. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 7.34. The receivables turnover for the company is 0.63for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 0.04. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 1.37.
Conclusion
To wrap up, the performance of Morgan Stanley (MS) has been better in recent times. The stock has received a bullish of “buy” and “hold” ratings from analysts. It is worth mentioning that the stock is currently trading in close proximity to its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
