Key Points
- Insider sale: Morgan Stanley insider Andrew Saperstein sold 51,668 shares on April 16 at an average of $188.59, netting about $9.74 million and reducing his stake by 15.48% to 282,142 shares (~$53.2M).
- Strong Q1 and positive momentum: MS beat expectations with $3.43 EPS (vs. $3.02 est.) and $20.58B revenue (vs. $19.23B est.), triggering analyst price‑target raises and momentum including >$100M of inflows into its spot Bitcoin ETF.
- Dividend declared: The company announced a $1.00 quarterly dividend (annualized $4.00, ~2.1% yield), with an ex‑dividend date of April 30 and payment on May 15.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) insider Daniel Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. This represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.
Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.9%
Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $188.95 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average is $168.83 and its 200-day moving average is $170.67. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $104.78 and a 12-month high of $194.59. The stock has a market cap of $298.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.19. 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 Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.89%. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.60 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is 36.23%.
Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MS. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,607,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 69.0% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 8,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,263,000 after purchasing an additional 3,661 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 90.9% during the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,378,000 after purchasing an additional 7,688 shares in the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.3% during the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 263,575 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,127,000 after purchasing an additional 15,623 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 7.8% during the second quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,805,000 after purchasing an additional 3,807 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
MS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $195.00 to $196.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday. HSBC increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group cut Morgan Stanley from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $199.67.
Read Our Latest Analysis on Morgan Stanley
Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley
Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations: revenue and EPS surprised on the upside, driven by strong trading and investment‑banking performance and continued wealth‑management flows — the core earnings beat is the primary driver of investor optimism. MS Q1 Deep Dive: Wealth and Investment Banking Deliver
- Positive Sentiment: MSBT (Morgan Stanley’s spot Bitcoin ETF) has drawn >$100M in its first week — a fast start that supports asset‑gathering momentum and fee diversification at the firm. Morgan Stanley Bitcoin ETF Tops $100 Million in Six Days
- Positive Sentiment: Wall Street is increasing MS valuation assumptions: several firms raised price targets and upgraded outlooks after Q1 (Bank of America, Evercore, Argus, Keefe Bruyette & Woods among them), which supports further upside narratives. Morgan Stanley Price Target Raised to $225.00 at Bank of America
- Neutral Sentiment: Dividend and capital return: Morgan Stanley announced a $1.00 quarterly dividend (ex‑dividend Apr 30), signaling confidence in cash generation and returning capital to shareholders (income‑supporting but not an earnings catalyst).
- Neutral Sentiment: Ongoing investment banking / underwriting activity (including large debt syndications) highlights the firm’s franchise utility in markets — positive for fee pipelines but cyclically sensitive to capital‑markets activity.
- Negative Sentiment: Regulatory / reputational overhang: Senator Elizabeth Warren requested Fed records tied to a Fed nominee’s past actions that reference Morgan Stanley; while not an immediate earnings issue, it increases political/regulatory headline risk. Elizabeth Warren Challenges Fed Chair Nominee Kevin Warsh
- Negative Sentiment: Some analysts still express caution: a few firms kept conservative ratings or raised PTs while maintaining neutral/hold views (e.g., HSBC/Rothschild adjustments), which can cap near‑term upside and prompt mixed trading. HSBC Adjusts Price Target on Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley Company Profile
(
Get 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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