Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $194.95 and last traded at $193.9850, with a volume of 2999522 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $191.88.

More Morgan Stanley News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morgan Stanley this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley lifted its S&P 500 forecast and reiterated a constructive outlook on stocks, which can boost sentiment toward the firm’s market strategy and research franchise.
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighted Morgan Stanley’s role in active calls across sectors, including bullish views on Ford and other names, underscoring its influence on investor positioning and trading ideas.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent headlines also noted Morgan Stanley deepening its digital bond push and benefiting from strong interest in its market commentary, supporting the story of a well-positioned capital markets business.
• Neutral Sentiment: Separate articles on Canada, the UK, India, and inflation reflected Morgan Stanley’s macro strategy work rather than a direct change to the company’s fundamentals.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. HSBC lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research reduced their price target on Morgan Stanley from $221.00 to $197.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.26.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $305.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $173.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $174.32.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.60 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total value of $9,744,068.12. Following the sale, the insider owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 169,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock worth $14,644,762. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wiregrass Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Wiregrass Investment Management LLC now owns 9,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,532,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 208.0% during the first quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 42,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,983,000 after buying an additional 28,656 shares during the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 32.1% in the first quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 14,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,314,000 after buying an additional 3,416 shares during the period. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the first quarter valued at $14,411,000. Finally, Oslo Pensjonsforsikring AS bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the first quarter valued at $910,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

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.