MML Investors Services LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• MML Investors Services LLC increased its Morgan Stanley stake by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, buying 24,178 additional shares and bringing its total to 503,125 shares worth about $89.3 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported strong quarterly earnings, posting $3.43 per share versus the $3.02 estimate and revenue of $20.58 billion, while revenue rose 16% year over year.
• The company also drew mixed signals from the market: analysts remain cautious overall with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $206.35 price target, even as the stock trades near its 52-week high and insiders have recently sold shares.

MML Investors Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 503,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,178 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $89,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,253,554,000 after purchasing an additional 1,361,940 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 103,854,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,437,334,000 after purchasing an additional 539,544 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 27,321,214 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,343,523,000 after purchasing an additional 167,487 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,070,557 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,786,350,000 after purchasing an additional 534,708 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,018,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,441,505,000 after purchasing an additional 524,189 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on Morgan Stanley to $187 from $179 while keeping a neutral rating, signaling improved expectations even though the new target still implies downside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Media coverage highlighted Morgan Stanley’s “wide awake” posture on M&A opportunities as the bank pursues a $10 trillion wealth-management ambition, which could support longer-term growth through acquisitions in advisors, private markets, and alternatives.
• Positive Sentiment: Additional reports emphasized Morgan Stanley’s continued strength in wealth management and its willingness to expand through inorganic growth, reinforcing the market’s view that the firm has multiple avenues for revenue growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: One article noted Morgan Stanley’s stock has climbed near its 52-week high, which may be drawing attention to valuation and limiting upside in the near term.
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group slightly lowered its FY2026 EPS estimate to $11.97 from $12.00, a minor change that does not appear to have altered the broader bullish tone.
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary continues to frame Morgan Stanley’s valuation as stretched after a strong rally, and the stock’s proximity to its 52-week high may prompt profit-taking.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS opened at $214.19 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $128.81 and a 1-year high of $219.16. The stock has a market cap of $337.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $193.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $180.97.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MS shares. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. CICC Research boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $221.00 to $197.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. 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 an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.35.

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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