Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Acquired by Lido Advisors LLC

Lido Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 59.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 252,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 93,859 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $40,117,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 115.5% in the third quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 181,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,835,000 after purchasing an additional 97,214 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 27,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,412,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Jain Global LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $15,011,000. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $170,037,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 11,883.6% in the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 453,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $72,082,000 after purchasing an additional 449,677 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total transaction of $3,691,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 127,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,598,777.60. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 15,838 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.77, for a total transaction of $2,942,225.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 135,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,135,424.08. This trade represents a 10.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $154.84 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $94.33 and a 1-year high of $192.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $176.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $168.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $245.87 billion, a PE ratio of 15.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.20.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 14.09%.The company had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MS. HSBC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Evercore lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $187.14.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: January quarter outperformance still supports the stock: Morgan Stanley reported an EPS beat and revenue growth (quarterly EPS $2.68 vs. $2.28 est.; revenue $17.90B). That strong print and solid ROE/margins remain a near-term underpinning for the share price.
• Positive Sentiment: Pro-research narrative on AI — Morgan Stanley research calling AI a macro force reinforces the firm’s thought-leadership and could help win institutional and wealth-management mandates tied to thematic investing and advisory. Morgan Stanley Warns AI Is Now a Macro Force
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley continues visible equity research and coverage activity (e.g., notes on Match Group and analyst price-target moves on other names). This keeps the firm front-and-center with institutional clients but is not an immediate earnings driver. Morgan Stanley ‘most constructive’ on Match Group shares in years
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley analysts continue to adjust ratings/price targets on coverage names (example: PT changes for Wyndham and Dell). Analyst activity signals engagement with clients but has mixed impact on MS’s trading operations. Morgan Stanley Cuts PT on Wyndham Hotels & Resorts
• Negative Sentiment: Liquidity/reputational risk from private-credit gating: Morgan Stanley (alongside BlackRock) limited withdrawals from a private-credit fund after heavy redemptions (nearly 11% sought from the North Haven Private Income Fund). Markets view gating as stabilizing for illiquid strategies but it raises regulatory, client-retention and franchise-risk questions that can pressure the stock. Exclusive: Morgan Stanley And BlackRock Limit Withdrawals—Is Private Credit Gating A Crisis Or Market ‘Stabilizer’?
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is participating in virtual analyst/IR events (e.g., group meetings such as KEI Industries’ virtual analyst meet), reflecting ongoing investment-banking and research client activity — supportive for fee pipelines but not an immediate stock catalyst. KEI Industries Schedules Virtual Analyst Meet with Morgan Stanley

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.