Madison Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Free Report) by 57.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 42,790 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 58,318 shares during the period. Madison Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $7,042,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth about $2,736,648,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,917,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,648,354,000 after purchasing an additional 3,364,080 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 142.4% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,122,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $511,723,000 after purchasing an additional 1,833,844 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,253,554,000 after buying an additional 1,361,940 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2,332.9% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,406,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $249,710,000 after buying an additional 1,348,683 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Dbs Bank raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.50.
Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley
Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is being viewed as Wall Street’s leading bank for AI debt deals, boosting optimism about investment-banking and financing revenue tied to data-center buildouts.
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts and media reports point to continued strength in Morgan Stanley’s outlook, including an article noting that FY2026 EPS forecasts were lifted.
- Positive Sentiment: Separate commentary says Morgan Stanley remains constructive on multiple sectors, including semiconductors and AI-linked infrastructure, reinforcing its image as a well-positioned market bellwether. Article: Morgan Stanley becomes Wall Street’s top bank for AI debt deals
- Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention is also being driven by general search interest and media mentions around Morgan Stanley, which can add to short-term trading momentum. Article: Morgan Stanley (MS) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
- Negative Sentiment: At the same time, Morgan Stanley recently downgraded several software names, including Adobe and Salesforce, which underscores ongoing concerns about AI-related disruption in parts of tech and may temper enthusiasm elsewhere in the market.
Morgan Stanley Trading Up 2.6%
Shares of MS opened at $216.34 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $136.17 and a 52-week high of $232.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $212.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $189.27. The stock has a market cap of $341.23 billion, a PE ratio of 17.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.19%.
Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.
Morgan Stanley 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.
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