Analysts Set Expectations for Morgan Stanley Q3 Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research has increased their Q3 2025 EPS estimate for Morgan Stanley to $1.95 per share, up from $1.94, along with revised estimates for future quarters.
• Morgan Stanley has authorized a $20 billion share buyback program, indicating the board's belief that the stock is undervalued.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.00 per share, up from $0.93, reflecting a 2.8% yield.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) - Research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q3 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Morgan Stanley in a report issued on Tuesday, August 5th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the financial services provider will earn $1.95 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $1.94. The consensus estimate for Morgan Stanley's current full-year earnings is $8.56 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Morgan Stanley's Q4 2025 earnings at $2.03 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.23 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $9.29 EPS and Q1 2027 earnings at $2.38 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on MS. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.25.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS traded up $3.49 during trading on Friday, reaching $147.37. 3,571,074 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,728,708. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.09 and a 12-month high of $148.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The stock has a market cap of $235.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.68, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.32. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $138.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.44.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $16.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.15 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 15.20% and a net margin of 13.06%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is currently 45.30%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 29,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.13, for a total transaction of $4,092,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 399,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,325,688.65. This represents a 6.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 18,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total transaction of $2,531,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 136,407 shares in the company, valued at $19,181,552.34. The trade was a 11.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 148,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,841,628 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 111.0% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. 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.