Telos Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 133,139 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,094 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley accounts for approximately 2.2% of Telos Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Telos Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $23,636,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at about $170,037,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 40.2% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,933,604 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $466,326,000 after purchasing an additional 841,263 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 6.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,267,847,000 after purchasing an additional 822,120 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 150.3% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,234,969 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $196,311,000 after purchasing an additional 741,651 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at about $104,097,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley
In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $6,020,286.48. Following the sale, the insider owned 357,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,254,222.62. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 8,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.08, for a total value of $1,547,680.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 119,128 shares in the company, valued at $21,690,826.24. The trade was a 6.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.
More Morgan Stanley News
Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:
- Positive Sentiment: MS launched the Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust (MSBT), the first spot Bitcoin ETF issued by a major U.S. bank and priced with a very low 0.14% fee — a distribution advantage to Morgan Stanley’s ~16,000 financial advisors and a potential new AUM/fee stream. Bitcoin ETF Era Expands — Article
- Positive Sentiment: MSBT attracted ~$30–34M of inflows/trading on its first day — an encouraging initial demand signal that should help AUM growth over time if distribution converts into sustained flows. First-day inflows — Article
- Neutral Sentiment: Q1 earnings are due April 15; consensus previews expect robust trading and IB fee strength (Zacks highlights ~$19.6B revenue and ~$3.08 EPS consensus). Results — and management comments on trading, IB pipeline, and wealth- and ETF-related flows — are the next major catalysts. Q1 preview — Article
- Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are actively reworking forecasts and price targets ahead of Q1 (upgrades and downgrades both appear). That creates mixed near-term sentiment and volatility as the street re-prices MS on updated trading/wealth assumptions. Analyst revisions — Article
- Negative Sentiment: MS’s low-fee Bitcoin ETF could spark broader fee competition across issuers; analysts warn a fee war may compress margins for ETF providers and asset managers — an industry headwind if sustained. That dynamic may pressure perceived long-term profitability from the ETF channel. Fee war concerns — Article
Morgan Stanley Price Performance
Shares of MS stock opened at $177.57 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $102.89 and a fifty-two week high of $192.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $280.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $168.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.75.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 14.09%.The business had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is presently 39.18%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several research firms have issued reports on MS. Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Evercore cut their target price on Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their target price on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $171.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $189.94.
View Our Latest Analysis on MS
Morgan Stanley Profile
(
Free Report)
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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