Morgan Stanley $MS Stake Reduced by Axxcess Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Axxcess Wealth Management cut its Morgan Stanley stake by 40.3% in the third quarter, selling 31,342 shares and retaining 46,485 shares valued at approximately $8.74 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 84.19%, with major investors including Bank of America, UBS Asset Management, Bank of New York Mellon and Dimensional Fund Advisors increasing their positions.
• Morgan Stanley recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with a $214.62 price target. The company also authorized a $20 billion share buyback and pays a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share.

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lowered its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 40.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,485 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 31,342 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth about $78,825,883,310. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,326,676 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,686,881,000 after acquiring an additional 87,533 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.7% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 11,206,144 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,342,532,000 after acquiring an additional 188,296 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.5% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 9,794,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,611,846,000 after acquiring an additional 422,775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 0.9% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,235,756 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,190,585,000 after acquiring an additional 65,739 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley, along with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, reportedly captured nearly 80% of the top five banks’ equity-trading revenue so far in 2026, generating a combined $52 billion. Demand from hedge funds for leveraged artificial-intelligence and semiconductor trades has been a major growth driver for the firm’s markets business. Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley are dominating the AI stock boom
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s chief U.S. equity strategist, Mike Wilson, said the market correction is nearing its end and projected the S&P 500 could reach 8,500 by mid-2027. A more optimistic market outlook could support wealth-management assets, investment banking activity and trading volumes. Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson Says Market Correction Nearly Over
• Positive Sentiment: The firm named Howmet Aerospace its top aerospace-sector pick, replacing FTAI Aviation, signaling continued confidence in aerospace investment-banking and research activity ahead of third-quarter earnings. Morgan Stanley Names Top Aerospace Pick to Replace FTAI
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Wealth Management’s Single Advisory Platform won the 2026 MMI/Barron’s Wealth Management Advisory Platform of the Year award, reinforcing the strength of its advisory franchise and brand. Morgan Stanley Named 2026 Wealth Management Advisory Platform of the Year
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent coverage describes Morgan Stanley as one of the more oversold financial stocks, which may attract bargain hunters but also underscores ongoing concerns about valuation and sector volatility. Top 3 Financial Stocks Which Could Rescue Your Portfolio In Q4
• Negative Sentiment: Exchange-traded funds were reported as net sellers of Morgan Stanley shares on October 19, creating a potential source of near-term selling pressure. ETFs Are Net Sellers of Morgan Stanley
• Negative Sentiment: A report questioning the yield offered by Morgan Stanley’s Series A preferred securities may weigh on income-oriented investor sentiment, although the issue relates primarily to the preferred stock rather than the common shares. Morgan Stanley Series A Preferreds: Yield Falls Short

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $243.00 to $195.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.62.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $186.83 on Thursday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $202.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $204.15. The company has a market cap of $294.69 billion, a PE ratio of 14.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $152.80 and a twelve month high of $232.25.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.10. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.40% and a net margin of 15.63%. The firm had revenue of $20.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.80 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.81 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is presently 36.51%.

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley NYSE: MS is a global financial services company that provides investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services to corporations, institutions, governments and individual investors. Founded in 1935, the company is headquartered in New York City and serves clients through operations across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other international markets.

Through its Institutional Securities segment, Morgan Stanley offers investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading, research, lending and related capital-markets services.

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