Quent Long Short Global Small Cap Fund LP Buys New Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Quent Long Short Global Small Cap Fund LP bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 14,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,495,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.6% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 27,321,214 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,343,523,000 after buying an additional 167,487 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.9% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 24,494,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,893,590,000 after buying an additional 448,960 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,267,847,000 after buying an additional 822,120 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.8% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,712,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,543,831,000 after purchasing an additional 354,871 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,083,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,443,926,000 after purchasing an additional 249,023 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reported solid Q1 results and has been active on capital (dividend, buybacks and funding moves) — fundamentals and capital returns support valuation. Morgan Stanley’s Strong Q1 Earnings And Capital Moves Could Be A Game Changer For Morgan Stanley (MS)
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage coverage is constructive: BMO raised its MS price target (supportive to sentiment/price targets from the sell side). BMO Capital Markets Increases Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target to $220.00
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and research pieces highlight Morgan Stanley’s role as an influential analyst and wealth manager (e.g., research on gaming/AI and sustainable investing) — these shape longer-term thematic flows but aren’t an immediate price catalyst. Gaming industry could unlock $22 billion in profits on AI-driven cost cuts, says Morgan Stanley
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s own macro take (downgrading near-term GDP outlook / warning on consumer dynamics) is being cited by media — that soft macro view can dampen investor appetite for bank cyclicality and reduce the “earnings multiple” investors are willing to pay. Morgan Stanley drops stunning take on GDP outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling was reported (executive sale disclosure), which can be interpreted negatively by some traders even if sales are routine. Combined with lower intraday volume vs. average, this can amplify moves down. Eric Grossman Sells 11,118 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stock

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $188.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $298.34 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $169.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.58. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $111.24 and a one year high of $194.59.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 14.65%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.8 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $207.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $196.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $201.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at $32,313,622.25. This represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 110,444 shares of company stock worth $20,665,049 in the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1935 by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley, the company provides a broad range of investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, governments, institutions and individual investors. Leadership has been guided by a senior executive team and board of directors; James P. Gorman has served as the company’s chief executive and chairman in recent years.

The firm’s primary business activities are organized around three principal businesses: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.