Rockland Trust Co. Grows Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Key Points

• Rockland Trust Co. boosted its Morgan Stanley stake by 14.2% to 80,559 shares (about $14.3M), part of broader institutional moves that leave 84.19% of MS stock owned by institutions.
• Analyst consensus is a "Hold" with an average price target of $187.14, reflecting mixed views after recent downgrades and several target revisions.
• Morgan Stanley beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, pays a $1 quarterly dividend (annualized $4.00, yield ~2.4%), but insiders have been net sellers (129,191 shares sold in the last 90 days; insider ownership ~0.19%).

Rockland Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 14.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 10,011 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $14,302,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 319.7% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,092,341 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $294,727,000 after purchasing an additional 1,593,774 shares in the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at $170,037,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,267,847,000 after buying an additional 822,120 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 150.3% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,234,969 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $196,311,000 after buying an additional 741,651 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter worth $104,097,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, HSBC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $187.14.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Expansion into alternatives (EquityZen deal, private‑credit push) signals a deliberate effort to grow AUM and fee income beyond traditional wealth and capital‑markets businesses — a potential multi‑year revenue driver for MS. Morgan Stanley's Push Into Alternatives: Is It an AUM Growth Catalyst?
• Positive Sentiment: Report that Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade unit is in talks to lead retail distribution for the SpaceX IPO points to incremental trading revenue and retail franchise wins — a visible boost to investor sentiment about MS’s retail/prime brokerage positioning. Morgan Stanley's E*Trade in talks to lead SpaceX IPO for small investors
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research is active and influential: the firm has recently named Meta a top pick and highlighted cybersecurity leaders — visible research leadership can drive trading, advisory and underwriting mandates. Those calls help explain positive sentiment around MS. ‘It’s time to buy Meta.’ Why Morgan Stanley sees 45% upside for the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Media coverage cites Morgan Stanley’s planned spot Bitcoin ETF and institutional BTC buying as market catalysts — if launched, the ETF could lift trading volumes and custody/fees for MS, but timing and regulatory outcomes remain uncertain. Bitcoin traders forecast short-term downside even as BTC price chases $68K
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and strategist commentary from Morgan Stanley (advocating a more defensive allocation and higher cash holdings) is driving flow rotation headlines — this can increase demand for fixed‑income products but may temper equity trading over the short term. It’s time to get defensive, say Morgan Stanley strategists. Hold more cash and make these moves.
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing market volatility and geopolitics (S&P correction headlines) create macro risk to MS’s trading and investment‑banking fees; strategists warn rate risks remain — a reminder MS exposure to market cycles can cut both trading and M&A revenue in downturns. Why Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) Is Up Today and Why Morgan Stanley Says the Worst May Be Over

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 3.7%

Shares of MS stock opened at $164.27 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $170.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.22. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $192.68. The stock has a market cap of $260.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.09, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. The business's revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.18%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 15,838 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.77, for a total transaction of $2,942,225.26. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 135,304 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,135,424.08. This represents a 10.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.00, for a total value of $3,966,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 171,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,464,920. This represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 in the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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