Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target Cut to $197.00 by Analysts at Wolfe Research

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its target price cut by Wolfe Research from $221.00 to $197.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on MS. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Friday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target 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. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Evercore downgraded Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $185.73.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.1%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $166.30 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $264.06 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $169.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.20. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.33 and a one year high of $192.68.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 39.18%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total value of $5,569,194.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 280,481 shares in the company, valued at $51,501,921.22. This represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $6,020,286.48. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 357,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,254,222.62. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506 in the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,253,554,000 after buying an additional 1,361,940 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 103,854,751 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,437,334,000 after buying an additional 539,544 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.6% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 27,321,214 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,343,523,000 after buying an additional 167,487 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,070,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,786,350,000 after acquiring an additional 534,708 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,018,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,441,505,000 after acquiring an additional 524,189 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: E*Trade (Morgan Stanley’s retail arm) is in talks to lead SpaceX’s U.S. retail IPO allocation — if confirmed this would strengthen MS’s retail distribution and fee pipeline and could boost E*Trade account activity and underwriting revenue. Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade in talks to lead SpaceX IPO share sale to small investors in US: Sources
• Positive Sentiment: Wolfe Research cut its MS price target (221?197) but maintained an “Outperform” rating — signals continued buy-side conviction from a major shop despite a model reset, supporting upside expectations. Wolfe Research adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley to $197 from $221; maintains Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s strategic push into alternatives (EquityZen deal, private credit growth) is highlighted as an AUM-growth catalyst — a longer-term revenue diversification story that could lift fee income and valuation multiple. Morgan Stanley’s Push Into Alternatives: Is It an AUM Growth Catalyst?
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile endorsement: coverage noting billionaire Paul Tudor Jones is bullish on Morgan Stanley reinforces demand-side narrative among some institutional investors. Morgan Stanley (MS): Billionaire Paul Tudor Jones Is Bullish on This Banking Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley strategists recommended a more defensive positioning for clients (higher cash/Treasury allocations) — this is a macro view that can temper sector rotation and volatility but is not a direct company-specific catalyst. It’s time to get defensive, say Morgan Stanley strategists. Hold more cash and make these moves.
• Negative Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn trimmed their PT on MS to $171 and kept a neutral rating — a downward revision that can weigh on near-term sentiment. Rothschild & Co Redburn adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley to $171 from $175; maintains Neutral
• Negative Sentiment: HSBC lowered its MS price target to $153 and kept a Hold rating — the cut increases the number of outside analysts signaling limited near-term upside and may pressure headline sentiment. HSBC adjusts price target on Morgan Stanley to $153 from $175; maintains Hold

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.