Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 123,407 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,509,180 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 123,407 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.16% of Morgan Stanley worth $456,420,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at $69,224,370.48. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762 over the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Daiwa Securities Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Argus raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $221.00 to $197.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. One 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $203.17.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.6%

MS stock opened at $189.21 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $299.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.22. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $117.21 and a one year high of $194.59. The company's 50 day moving average price is $171.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.89%. The business's revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.60 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley was tapped to help lead a roughly $13 billion financing for Meta’s El Paso data‑center project — a sizable investment‑banking mandate that supports fee and underwriting revenue expectations. Meta taps Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan for El Paso data center deal
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research is highlighting a massive surge in hyperscaler AI capex (big‑tech spending seen near ~$800B in 2026). That outlook supports investment‑banking, markets activity and asset‑management advisory tied to AI infrastructure. David Sacks Says AI Could Drive 75% Of US GDP Growth As Morgan Stanley Sees Big Tech AI Capex Surging Past $800 Billion In 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Flows into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs were strong, and Morgan Stanley’s MSBT logged positive inflows — a signal for continued client interest in MS‑managed products and custody/ETP distribution revenue. Bitcoin ETFs pull in $532M as BTC reclaims $80K amid ‘post-ceasefire recovery’
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Investment Management launched a Wealth Education Center for advisors — a product/positioning move that helps deepen advisor relationships and could modestly support AUM growth over time. Morgan Stanley Investment Management Introduces Wealth Education Center
• Neutral Sentiment: Daiwa raised its price target on Morgan Stanley to $198 but kept a neutral rating — a moderately supportive data point, though the firm did not upgrade to an outright buy. Daiwa adjusts price target on Morgan Stanley to $198 from $175; maintains neutral
• Negative Sentiment: The WSJ/Reuters reported a preliminary U.S. probe into Morgan Stanley’s Budapest investment‑banking program — a regulatory overhang that can pressure sentiment and create near‑term volatility until clarified. Morgan Stanley's investment banking program in Budapest hit by US probe

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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