Titan Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Free Report) by 22.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,958 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley accounts for 3.0% of Titan Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Titan Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $4,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MS. Crown Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.2% during the second quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Hughes Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 55.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 35.7% in the 2nd quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 8,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,724,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank OZK boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank OZK now owns 1,815 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $379,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities analysts have weighed in on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $205.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $214.62.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on MS
Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.7%
NYSE MS opened at $183.77 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $152.80 and a 1-year high of $232.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. The company has a market capitalization of $289.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $201.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $204.27.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $20.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.93 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.40% and a net margin of 15.63%. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.80 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.51%.
Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley
Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley, alongside Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, reportedly captured nearly 80% of the top five banks’ equity-trading revenue this year, generating a combined $52 billion. The surge was driven by heavy hedge-fund borrowing and leveraged activity tied to artificial intelligence hardware and semiconductor stocks, highlighting strong market-sensitive revenue potential for MS. Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley are dominating the AI stock boom
- Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Wealth Management received the 2026 Money Management Institute/Barron’s Wealth Management Advisory Platform of the Year award. The recognition reinforces the firm’s competitive position in advisory services and supports the longer-term growth case for its fee-based wealth-management business. Morgan Stanley Named 2026 Money Management Institute/Barron’s Wealth Management Advisory Platform of the Year
- Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage continues to focus on whether Morgan Stanley’s wealth-management operations can help stabilize performance. That business provides recurring fees and diversification from more cyclical investment-banking and trading results. Can Wealth Management Keep Morgan Stanley Steady?
- Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley named Howmet Aerospace its top aerospace pick for the third quarter, replacing FTAI Aviation. The report reflects the firm’s research and advisory activity rather than a direct change to Morgan Stanley’s earnings outlook, so the effect on MS is limited. Morgan Stanley Names Top Aerospace Pick to Replace FTAI
- Negative Sentiment: Coverage questioning whether Morgan Stanley can sustain its valuation may be contributing to profit-taking after the recent run-up. At approximately 14.6 times earnings, the stock remains exposed to concerns about slowing growth or weaker capital-markets activity. Can Morgan Stanley Sustain Its Valuation?
- Negative Sentiment: Reported ETF net selling of Morgan Stanley shares on October 19 represents a near-term technical headwind, potentially adding to downside pressure even without a new fundamental deterioration. ETFs Are Net Sellers of Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley Company Profile
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services company that provides investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, institutions, governments and individual investors. Founded in 1935, the company is headquartered in New York City and serves clients through operations across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other international markets.
Through its Institutional Securities segment, Morgan Stanley offers investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading, research, lending and related capital-markets services.
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