Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Acquired by Allstate Corp

Key Points

• Allstate Corp increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 120% in the fourth quarter, buying 49,598 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 90,913 shares valued at about $16.1 million.
• Morgan Stanley reported strong quarterly earnings, posting $3.43 EPS versus the $3.02 consensus and revenue of $20.58 billion, both above expectations. Revenue rose 16% year over year.
• Wall Street remains cautiously positive on the stock, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.95. The shares were trading near $201.18, close to their 52-week high of $203.09.

Allstate Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 120.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 90,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 49,598 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $16,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MS. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. increased 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake 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.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the subject of several research reports. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $196.00 to $214.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $207.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $205.95.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $201.18 on Tuesday. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $180.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.36. The stock has a market cap of $317.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.22, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.22. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $123.88 and a 52-week high of $203.09.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.60 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at $69,224,370.48. This represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 owned 282,142 shares of the company's stock, 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 sold a total of 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762 in the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Morgan Stanley’s strong first-quarter 2026 performance, with gains driven by solid client activity and healthy investment banking and trading results, which supports the stock’s bullish momentum.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent market coverage also emphasized that Morgan Stanley has outperformed the broader market and much of the financial sector so far this year, reinforcing investor confidence in the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s analysts issued several ratings actions on other companies, including an upgrade on Franklin Resources and cuts to targets on Edison International, Polaris, Southern Company, and others. These show the firm remains active and influential, but they are only indirect catalysts for MS. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from Morgan Stanley portfolio manager Andrew Slimmon about the market not being in a dot-com bubble adds visibility for the firm, but it does not materially change the near-term outlook for MS stock. Article Title

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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