Assetmark Inc. Purchases 11,305 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 7.0% in the first quarter, buying 11,305 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 171,725 shares worth about $28.26 million.
• Morgan Stanley posted strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.46 and revenue of $21.35 billion, both beating analyst expectations and showing significant year-over-year growth.
• Shareholders are getting more capital returns: the board approved a $20 billion buyback program, and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.15 per share from $1.00.

Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 7.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 171,725 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,305 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $28,261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 29,744 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,281,000 after buying an additional 8,512 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 679.8% in the fourth quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 42,400 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,527,000 after acquiring an additional 36,963 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 965,323 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $171,866,000 after acquiring an additional 67,613 shares during the last quarter. BOCHK Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,260,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 646,571 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $116,102,000 after acquiring an additional 65,246 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider owned 169,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on MS. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Dbs Bank upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $220.80.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.4%

MS opened at $215.27 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $136.17 and a 12 month high of $232.25. The company has a market cap of $339.54 billion, a PE ratio of 17.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The company has a 50 day moving average of $211.69 and a 200 day moving average of $188.71.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 12.55 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 purchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.19%.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reported blockbuster Q2 2026 results, with record net revenues of about $21.3 billion and earnings that beat expectations, reinforcing confidence in the company’s core businesses. Morgan Stanley (MS) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenues and Strategic Growth ...
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share, a 15% increase from the prior quarter, which signals confidence in earnings power and capital return capacity.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the earnings release, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising its price target to $250 and Erste Group lifting FY2027 EPS estimates, suggesting more upside may remain. Morgan Stanley had its price target raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $225.00 to $250.00
• Neutral Sentiment: New reports also pointed to Morgan Stanley’s E*TRADE crypto rollout and AI-related market activity, which could help broaden its platform appeal over time but are not likely the main short-term drivers of the stock move.
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles noted a downgrade-style view from Seeking Alpha and a JPMorgan target below the current share price, which may temper enthusiasm at the margin even after the strong earnings beat. Morgan Stanley Maintains Hold on Comstock Resources, Keeps Price Target Unchanged at $16 Amid Cash Outspend and Funding Concerns

Morgan Stanley Company 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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