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Morgan Stanley (MS) Stock Forecast & Price Target

Morgan Stanley logo
$214.41 +1.75 (+0.82%)
Closing price 03:58 PM Eastern
Extended Trading
$213.25 -1.16 (-0.54%)
As of 07:57 PM Eastern
Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Massive. Learn more.

Morgan Stanley - Analysts' Recommendations and Stock Price Forecast (2026)

Consensus Rating

Sell
1
Hold
10
Buy
15

Based on 26 Wall Street analysts who have issued ratings for Morgan Stanley in the last 12 months, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy." Out of the 26 analysts, 1 has given a sell rating, 10 have given a hold rating, 12 have given a buy rating, and 3 have given a strong buy rating for MS.

Consensus Price Target

$224.75
4.82% Upside
According to the 26 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Morgan Stanley, the average price target is $224.75. The highest price target for MS is $262.00, while the lowest price target for MS is $195.00. The average price target represents a forecasted upside of 4.82% from the current price of $214.41.
MarketBeat calculates consensus analyst ratings for stocks using the most recent rating from each Wall Street analyst that has rated a stock within the last twelve months. Each analyst's rating is normalized to a standardized rating score of 1 (sell), 2 (hold), 3 (buy) or 4 (strong buy). Analyst consensus ratings scores are calculated using the mean average of the number of normalized sell, hold, buy and strong buy ratings from Wall Street analysts. Each stock's consensus analyst rating is derived from its calculated consensus ratings score (0 to .5 = Strong Sell, .5 to 1 = Sell, 1 to 1.5 = Reduce, 1.5 to 2.5 = Hold, 2.5 to 3.0 = Moderate Buy, 3.0 to 3.5 = Buy, >3.5 = Strong Buy). MarketBeat's consensus price targets are a mean average of the most recent available price targets set by each analyst that has set a price target for the stock in the last twelve months. MarketBeat's consensus ratings and consensus price targets may differ from those calculated by other firms due to differences in methodology and available data.
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MS Analyst Ratings Over Time

TypeCurrent Forecast
9/11/25 to 9/11/26
1 Month Ago
8/12/25 to 8/12/26
3 Months Ago
6/13/25 to 6/13/26
1 Year Ago
9/11/24 to 9/11/25
Strong Buy
3 Strong Buy rating(s)
2 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
1 Strong Buy rating(s)
Buy
12 Buy rating(s)
12 Buy rating(s)
12 Buy rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
Hold
10 Hold rating(s)
11 Hold rating(s)
12 Hold rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
Sell
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target$224.75$224.75$206.35$138.25
Forecasted Upside4.82% Upside3.23% Upside-3.66% Downside-11.70% Downside
Consensus RatingModerate BuyModerate BuyModerate BuyModerate Buy

MS Analyst Recommendations By Month

The chart below shows how a company's ratings by analysts have changed over time. Each bar represents the previous year of ratings for that month. Within each bar, the sell ratings are shown in red, the hold ratings are shown in yellow, the buy ratings are shown in green, and the strong buy ratings are shown in dark green.
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MS Price Targets by Month

The chart below shows how a company's share price and consensus price target have changed over time. The dark blue line represents the company's actual price. The lighter blue line represents the stock's consensus price target. The even lighter blue range in the background of the two lines represents the low price target and the high price target for each stock.
Skip Chart and View Analyst Price Target HistorySkip Chart & View Price History Table

Morgan Stanley Stock vs. The Competition

TypeMorgan StanleyFinance CompaniesBroader Market
Consensus Rating Score
2.65
2.27
2.53
Consensus RatingModerate BuyHoldModerate Buy
Predicted Upside4.71% Upside31.01% Upside16.28% Upside
News Sentiment Rating
Positive News

See Recent MS News
Positive News
Positive News
DateBrokerageAnalystActionRatingPrice TargetReport Date
Upside/Downside
Details
8/24/2026
Zacks Research logo
Zacks Research
5 of 5 stars
 UpgradeHoldStrong-Buy
8/5/2026
Weiss Ratings logo
Weiss Ratings
5 of 5 stars
 UpgradeBuy (B-)Buy (B)
8/3/2026
UBS Group AG logo
UBS Group
4 of 5 stars
Erika Najarian
Erika Najarian
3 of 5 stars
Boost TargetBuy$255.00 ➝ $260.00+24.22%
7/21/2026Boost TargetHold$190.00 ➝ $215.00+1.91%
7/20/2026Reiterated RatingSector Perform$243.00+12.88%
7/17/2026Boost TargetOutperform$240.00 ➝ $250.00+14.48%
7/17/2026Boost TargetNeutral$220.00 ➝ $235.00+7.62%
7/17/2026 UpgradeHoldStrong-Buy
7/16/2026Boost TargetOverweight$230.00 ➝ $262.00+14.65%
7/16/2026Boost TargetEqual Weight$225.00 ➝ $240.00+5.02%
7/16/2026Boost TargetNeutral$187.00 ➝ $195.00-10.02%
7/16/2026Boost TargetOutperform$225.00 ➝ $250.00+9.40%
7/7/2026 UpgradeHoldStrong-Buy
7/7/2026Boost TargetBuy$225.00 ➝ $250.00+13.20%
7/6/2026 Reiterated RatingOutperform
7/6/2026Boost TargetNeutral$211.00 ➝ $233.00+8.74%
6/30/2026DowngradeMarket PerformUnderperform
6/25/2026 Boost TargetNeutral$183.00 ➝ $195.00-12.50%
5/19/2026 Boost TargetOutperform$175.00 ➝ $200.00+4.31%
5/7/2026 Boost Target$185.00 ➝ $220.00+14.62%
5/5/2026 Boost TargetNeutral$175.00 ➝ $198.00+4.67%
4/27/2026 UpgradeHoldBuy
4/24/2026 Boost TargetNeutral$195.00 ➝ $205.00+9.26%
4/16/2026 Boost TargetBuy$210.00 ➝ $225.00+17.60%
4/16/2026Reiterated RatingMarket Perform
4/1/2026 Lower TargetOutperform$221.00 ➝ $197.00+18.55%

Analyst ratings data on MarketBeat is provided by Benzinga and other data providers. This page was last refreshed on Friday at 10:44 PM ET.


Should I Buy Morgan Stanley Stock? MS Pros and Cons Explained

These pros and cons were generated based on recent news and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate insights. They were last updated on Friday, September 11, 2026. Please send any questions or comments about these Morgan Stanley pros and cons to contact@marketbeat.com.

Morgan Stanley
Bull Case

green Wall Street bull icon

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in Morgan Stanley:

  • Morgan Stanley is currently trading at $214.41, which is below the consensus price target of $224.75 set by analysts who hold a Moderate Buy rating, suggesting potential for price appreciation as the stock trades at a 17.33 price-to-earnings ratio that is considered attractive relative to other large financial institutions.
  • The company recently reported strong operating momentum with earnings per share of $3.46, which exceeded analyst expectations of $2.89, while revenue reached $21.35 billion, representing a 27.1% year-over-year increase that demonstrates robust fundamental support for the stock.
  • Morgan Stanley is partnering with OpenAI to develop ChatGPT-based financial-services tools for Wall Street, an initiative that could strengthen the firm's technology position and create longer-term efficiency or client-service benefits for its investment banking and wealth management segments.
  • The board approved a $20.00 billion stock repurchase program in June 2026, allowing the company to buy back up to 5.6% of its outstanding shares, which is generally a sign that leadership believes the shares are undervalued and aims to support shareholder value.
  • Investors can benefit from a dividend yield of 2.14%, supported by a recent increase in the quarterly dividend to $1.15 per share, which represents a positive change from the previous $1.00 payout and provides a steady income stream with a payout ratio of 37.19%.

Morgan Stanley
Bear Case

red Wall Street bear icon

Investors should be bearish about investing in Morgan Stanley for these reasons:

  • Market-wide risk aversion is weighing on financial stocks, with Morgan Stanley strategists identifying higher oil prices and interest rates as key risks to equities, as rising yields can pressure valuations and reduce investor appetite for economically sensitive stocks.
  • After gaining more than 20% over the past six months, the stock may be vulnerable to profit-taking, as recent commentary noted that the stock's decline was more pronounced than the broader market, suggesting investors are locking in gains or reassessing its valuation.
  • Recent insider trading activity shows a pattern of selling, with executives such as Eric F Grossman and Andrew M Saperstein selling significant numbers of shares in April 2026 at prices around $190, which may signal that insiders are taking advantage of the recent price appreciation.
  • The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65, which indicates a high level of leverage relative to its equity, potentially increasing financial risk during periods of economic uncertainty or rising interest rates.
  • Short interest has increased slightly, with shares shorted rising to 14,854,574 in the most recent reporting period, indicating that some investors are betting against the stock's future performance despite the recent gains.

MS Forecast - Frequently Asked Questions

According to the research reports of 26 Wall Street equities research analysts, the average twelve-month stock price forecast for Morgan Stanley is $224.75, with a high forecast of $262.00 and a low forecast of $195.00.

26 Wall Street analysts have issued "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings for Morgan Stanley in the last twelve months. There is currently 1 sell rating, 10 hold ratings, 12 buy ratings and 3 strong buy ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street analysts is that investors should "moderate buy" MS shares.

According to analysts, Morgan Stanley's stock has a predicted upside of 4.82% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.

Over the previous 90 days, Morgan Stanley's stock had 4 upgrades and 1 downgrade by analysts.

Morgan Stanley also publishes sell-side equities research reports and recommendations about other companies, which can be viewed at its brokerage rating page.

Analysts like Morgan Stanley more than other "finance" companies. The consensus rating for Morgan Stanley is Moderate Buy while the average consensus rating for "finance" companies is Hold. Learn more on how MS compares to other companies.


MarketBeat monitors more than a dozen sources for Morgan Stanley analyst ratings, with the most recent rating issued on 8/24/2026.
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