AMF Tjanstepension AB Sells 59,652 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• AMF Tjanstepension AB reduced its Morgan Stanley stake by 14.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 59,652 shares and ending with 349,419 shares valued at about $62.0 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.43 beating estimates and revenue of $20.58 billion topping expectations; revenue rose 16% year over year.
• The stock has also drawn mixed but generally positive Wall Street sentiment, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $206.26, while the company recently paid a $1.00 quarterly dividend.

AMF Tjanstepension AB lowered its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 14.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 349,419 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 59,652 shares during the quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $62,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,253,554,000 after buying an additional 1,361,940 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2,332.9% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the third quarter worth $170,037,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 40.2% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,933,604 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $466,326,000 after purchasing an additional 841,263 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,267,847,000 after purchasing an additional 822,120 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s own analysis of broader markets remains constructive, with strategists saying equities still have upside support from AI-driven growth and employment trends, even as they flag recession and bond-market risks. That keeps the firm visible in the ongoing AI-led market narrative. Morgan Stanley Remains Bullish on Equities While Flagging Recession Risks Ahead
• Positive Sentiment: The bank also helped fuel bullish sentiment in semiconductors by raising its revenue estimate for Nvidia ahead of earnings and highlighting continued upside potential, reinforcing Morgan Stanley’s influence in high-profile growth themes that investors are still rewarding. Morgan Stanley Lifts Nvidia Stock (NVDA) Price Target Ahead of Q1 Earnings, Sees ‘Continued Upside to Numbers’
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent market headlines show Morgan Stanley-linked commentary spanning everything from AI infrastructure to energy and utilities, suggesting the bank is well positioned around major investor themes, though none of these articles directly change MS fundamentals today.
• Negative Sentiment: At the same time, the firm warned that a bond selloff could trigger a meaningful stock-market correction. That caution may temper enthusiasm and explains why any move higher in Morgan Stanley (MS) is modest rather than explosive. Morgan Stanley’s Wilson Warns Stock Rally at Risk From Bond Rout

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $192.71 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $303.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. 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 stock's 50-day simple moving average is $176.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $175.16. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $123.88 and a twelve month high of $197.50.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The company's revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.60 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is 36.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total transaction of $2,120,758.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Daiwa Securities Group upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Barclays upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $219.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $207.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, HSBC upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $206.26.

About Morgan Stanley

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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