Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC Has $4.66 Million Stock Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Mayflower Financial Advisors cut its Morgan Stanley stake by 24.1% in the first quarter, selling 8,999 shares and ending with 28,311 shares valued at about $4.66 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $3.43 versus estimates of $3.02 and revenue of $20.58 billion, up 16% year over year.
• The company also announced a $20 billion share repurchase program and recently paid a $1.00 quarterly dividend, bringing the annualized payout to $4.00 per share.

Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 24.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,311 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,999 shares during the quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $4,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.1%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $212.16 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $334.64 billion, a PE ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.23. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $135.26 and a twelve month high of $230.47. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $203.53 and a 200-day moving average of $184.79.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.60 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total value of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. This represents a 15.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $210.50.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its price target on Morgan Stanley to $240 from $220 and kept an Outperform rating, signaling confidence in further upside. MarketScreener article
• Positive Sentiment: The company also announced a higher quarterly dividend and a new $20 billion share repurchase authorization, which should appeal to income and capital-return investors. Yahoo Finance article
• Positive Sentiment: Investor sentiment around Morgan Stanley has also been helped by broader optimism on IPOs and equity issuance, which could support the firm’s investment banking franchise if deal activity stays strong into 2026. Stocktwits article
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is being cited in several third-party articles, including commentary on broader market themes and sector stock picks, which adds visibility but does not appear to be a direct earnings catalyst. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent coverage also notes that Morgan Stanley continues to make stock calls across utilities, beverage, and other sectors, reinforcing its role as a market-moving analyst but not changing MS fundamentals by itself.

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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