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Enterprising Investor

10/19/18 10:37 PM

#54 RE: Enterprising Investor #53

Morgan Stanley Is Buying Up a Pair of Small Stocks (10/05/18)

By Ed Lin

Morgan Stanley(MS) recently disclosed that it has been buying large quantities of stock in two small companies.

The bank disclosed that its holdings in New York REIT(NYRT), a real-estate investment trust in the state of liquidating and winding down, and CRH Medical(CRHM), which provides anesthesia services for endoscopic procedures in ambulatory surgical centers.

Morgan Stanley bought 883,731 more shares of New York REIT, pushing its investment to 888,418 shares, a stake of 5.3%, as of Sept. 18. The bank had only owned 4,687 New York REIT shares at June 30, and crossing the 5% ownership threshold had necessitated a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Morgan Stanley also bought 1.96 million additional shares of CRH Medical, raising its stake to 3.64 million shares, or 5.0%, as of Sept. 21. It had only held 1.69 million CRH Medical shares at June 30.

New York REIT’s shares have tumbled 54% so far this year. As of Aug. 8, 2018, the company only held a 50.1% interest in New York’s Worldwide Plaza, and the Viceroy Hotel on West 57 Street in Manhattan. New York REIT has a market capitalization of $303 million.

CRH Medical shares have surged 37% year to date, and the company has a market cap of $274 million.

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https://www.barrons.com/articles/morgan-stanley-is-buying-up-a-pair-of-small-stocks-1538731801