Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Has $22.90 Million Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Generali Asset Management increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, ending with 128,964 shares worth about $22.9 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.43 beating estimates and revenue of $20.58 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 16% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment has turned more positive, with firms including UBS, Evercore, and Daiwa raising price targets; Morgan Stanley now has a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target of $204.17.

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 128,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,950 shares during the quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $22,895,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MS. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 65.2% during the third quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised targets on MS — UBS bumped its price target to $214 (from $196), signaling constructive views on MS’s revenue mix and capital-markets positioning, which is supportive for the stock over the medium term. UBS raises Morgan Stanley PT
• Positive Sentiment: Daiwa also raised its MS target, another analyst-friendly datapoint that can support sentiment versus pure-market moves. Daiwa raises MS PT
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (an MS‑linked vehicle) reported NII of $0.47, a small beat that indicates pockets of stable fee/income performance in MS’s broader alternative/credit businesses. That helps offset some weakness elsewhere. MSDL NII beats
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is piloting spot crypto trading on E*Trade with aggressive 50 bps fees — a distribution and product-expansion positive long term, but it also risks starting a fee war (and regulatory/operational execution issues) that could pressure brokerage margins. Market reaction is mixed. MS crypto pilot on E*Trade
• Negative Sentiment: Client-team loss: Wells Fargo hired a $1.5B Pennsylvania wealth team from Morgan Stanley — a modest asset outflow and a visible win for a competitor that can pressure MS’s wealth‑management flows and near-term AUM momentum. Wells Fargo hires MS team

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $190.33 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $300.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $119.99 and a 1-year high of $194.83. The stock's 50-day moving average is $172.76 and its 200 day moving average is $173.64.

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

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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. Insiders have sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762 in the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MS shares. HSBC increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Evercore upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $196.00 to $214.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $204.17.

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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