Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target Cut to $215.00 by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets lowered Morgan Stanley’s price target from $250 to $215 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, implying approximately 13% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $219.90.
• Morgan Stanley recently exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.46 in EPS and $21.35 billion in revenue, while its board authorized a $20 billion share-repurchase program.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by equities research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $250.00 to $215.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. BMO Capital Markets' price objective would suggest a potential upside of 13.04% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $243.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $187.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $219.90.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $190.20 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $209.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $202.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $151.84 and a 12-month high of $232.25. The company has a market cap of $300.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.22.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 15.65%.The company's revenue was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MS. Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at about $3,147,000. Eastern Bank boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.3% in the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 71,204 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,392,000 after acquiring an additional 940 shares during the last quarter. Polaris Financial Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. CX Institutional raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 7,998 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.5% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,245 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,175,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley strategists continue to see opportunities in beaten-down industrial stocks, arguing that resilient earnings growth could support an earnings-led market improvement. The outlook reinforces the firm’s reputation as a source of constructive equity research and may modestly support sentiment toward MS. Morgan Stanley’s Wilson Sees Earnings-Led Upturn in Industrials
• Positive Sentiment: An analysis of Morgan Stanley’s long-term strategy highlights its shift from a market-dependent trading business toward a more diversified platform spanning wealth management, investment banking and asset management. That diversification can provide more durable earnings and supports the company’s valuation case. What is Morgan Stanley’s Economic Moat, and is it Widening or Narrowing?
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund announced plans for its third-quarter earnings call. The event could provide information on private-credit demand, portfolio performance and fee-related activity, but no results or material change to Morgan Stanley’s outlook were reported in the available update. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Sets Q3 Earnings Call
• Negative Sentiment: Shares remain below both key moving averages, which may limit near-term momentum and indicate that investors are still digesting valuation or broader financial-sector concerns. This technical backdrop offsets some of the company’s positive fundamental indicators, including its latest reported EPS and revenue beats.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm serving corporations, governments, financial institutions, individuals and other investors. The company provides investment banking and advisory services, including mergers and acquisitions advice, equity and debt underwriting, securities sales and trading, and corporate lending.

Through its Wealth Management business, Morgan Stanley offers financial planning, brokerage, investment advisory and banking services to individual investors, businesses and institutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.