Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Purchased by Global Retirement Partners LLC

Posted by Stanley Muller on May 22nd, 2026

Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Free Report) by 63.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,722 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,240 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $7,407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1,855.6% in the 4th quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 176 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. HSBC lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $207.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $219.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $196.00 to $214.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.95.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on Morgan Stanley

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the sale, the insider owned 282,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total transaction of $2,779,935.60. Following 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is benefiting from continued investor interest in its investment-banking franchise, especially after reports that OpenAI is preparing for a potential IPO with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs as key bankers. That keeps MS in focus as a likely winner from high-profile capital-markets activity.
Positive Sentiment: The firm also remains associated with constructive analyst commentary across several holdings and sectors, including recent notes on AI dealmaking, NextEra Energy, and other names, reinforcing the view that Morgan Stanley is well positioned in active markets and advisory work.
Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley announced the winners of its 2026 Strategy Challenge, highlighting its pro bono nonprofit work in the U.S. and U.K. This is positive for reputation, but it is unlikely to be a major stock driver on its own. Article Title
Neutral Sentiment: Another headline said Morgan Stanley asked Hong Kong bankers to carry separate phones on China trips, reflecting tighter data-security controls. That is more of an operational/compliance item than a direct earnings catalyst. Article Title

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.4%

MS opened at $200.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $178.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $175.83. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $123.88 and a 1-year high of $200.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $316.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.22.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.60 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

About Morgan Stanley

(Free Report)

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.