California Public Employees Retirement System Acquires 287,056 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 13.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,422,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 287,056 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.15% of Morgan Stanley worth $398,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 29,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,281,000 after acquiring an additional 8,512 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 679.8% in the fourth quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 42,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,527,000 after acquiring an additional 36,963 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 965,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $171,866,000 after acquiring an additional 67,613 shares in the last quarter. BOCHK Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth about $1,260,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11.2% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 646,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $116,102,000 after purchasing an additional 65,246 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $215.27 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $188.71. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $136.17 and a 52-week high of $232.25. The firm has a market cap of $339.54 billion, a PE ratio of 17.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. The firm had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 15.65%.The business’s revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.23%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reported blockbuster Q2 2026 results, with record net revenues of about $21.3 billion and earnings that beat expectations, reinforcing confidence in the company’s core businesses. Morgan Stanley (MS) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenues and Strategic Growth …
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share, a 15% increase from the prior quarter, which signals confidence in earnings power and capital return capacity.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the earnings release, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising its price target to $250 and Erste Group lifting FY2027 EPS estimates, suggesting more upside may remain. Morgan Stanley had its price target raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $225.00 to $250.00
• Neutral Sentiment: New reports also pointed to Morgan Stanley’s E*TRADE crypto rollout and AI-related market activity, which could help broaden its platform appeal over time but are not likely the main short-term drivers of the stock move.
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles noted a downgrade-style view from Seeking Alpha and a JPMorgan target below the current share price, which may temper enthusiasm at the margin even after the strong earnings beat. Morgan Stanley Maintains Hold on Comstock Resources, Keeps Price Target Unchanged at $16 Amid Cash Outspend and Funding Concerns

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $220.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 169,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley 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.