Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target Raised to $219.00

Key Points

• HSBC raised Morgan Stanley’s price target from $215 to $219 while maintaining a “hold” rating, implying 11.55% potential upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $224.10, despite mixed recent recommendations.
• Morgan Stanley exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.46 in EPS and $21.35 billion in revenue, while also authorizing a $20 billion share-buyback program covering up to 5.6% of outstanding shares.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by HSBC from $215.00 to $219.00 in a research note issued on Monday. The firm presently has a "hold" rating on the financial services provider's stock. HSBC's price target suggests a potential upside of 11.55% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $240.00 to $223.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Bank of America raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $224.10.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $196.33 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $151.84 and a one year high of $232.25. The company has a market cap of $309.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $212.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $200.81.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan 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 reacquire up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth approximately $78,825,883,310. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,040,227,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 142.4% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,122,060 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $511,723,000 after purchasing an additional 1,833,844 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $295,482,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth approximately $110,938,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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. The company serves corporations, governments, financial institutions, individuals and institutional investors through a range of advisory, capital-raising, trading and investment-related activities.

Morgan Stanley's Institutional Securities business offers investment banking services, including mergers and acquisitions advice, underwriting and capital markets services.

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