Seaport Res Ptn Predicts Weaker Earnings for Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Seaport Res Ptn dropped their Q2 2025 earnings per share estimates for Morgan Stanley in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, July 8th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst J. Mitchell now expects that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $1.96 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.06. The consensus estimate for Morgan Stanley's current full-year earnings is $8.56 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Morgan Stanley's Q3 2025 earnings at $2.03 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.16 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.57 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.41 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.36 EPS and Q4 2026 earnings at $2.36 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $136.69.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.6%

MS traded down $0.84 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $142.26. 1,629,498 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,672,424. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $145.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.70, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.30. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $131.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $126.60.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 12.98%. The firm had revenue of $17.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 1st that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 335,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 10,068 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.65, for a total value of $1,124,092.20. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 199,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,248,942.10. This represents a 4.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MS. 1ST Source Bank increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 15,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. McLean Asset Management Corp increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% in the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.5% in the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 5,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $707,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 4,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $594,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Omnia Family Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

Morgan Stanley, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It operates through Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments.