Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.57 EPS

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57, FiscalAI reports. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.70%. The firm had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Here are the key takeaways from Morgan Stanley’s conference call:

• Morgan Stanley reported record second-quarter results, with revenue of $21.3 billion, EPS ex-CVA of $3.46, and ROTCE of 26.6%, contributing to an exceptionally strong first half of 2026.
• Wealth Management delivered record revenue of $8.9 billion and record net new assets of $148 billion, helped by strong workplace-channel inflows, IPO-related flows, and continued growth in fee-based assets.
• Institutional Securities had a record $11 billion revenue quarter, led by an exceptional $6.3 billion equities result and stronger investment banking activity across advisory, equity underwriting, and fixed income underwriting.
• Investment Management reached a milestone $2 trillion in AUM, with $7.5 billion of long-term net inflows and continued strength in alternatives and Parametric solutions.
• The firm highlighted strong capital generation, ending with a 14.8% CET1 ratio, repurchasing $1.5 billion of stock, and raising the quarterly dividend by 15% to $1.15 per share, while maintaining a disciplined approach to capital deployment and acquisitions.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.4%

MS opened at $228.52 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $360.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $210.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $188.27. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $135.26 and a fifty-two week high of $232.25.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley posted record quarterly revenue and profit, beating analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines, which supports the stock. Morgan Stanley Reports Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Results
• Positive Sentiment: Trading and investment banking were key upside drivers, showing that market volatility and dealmaking activity are still benefiting Morgan Stanley’s core businesses. Morgan Stanley profit rises on dealmaking boost, strong trading
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its quarterly dividend by 15%, reinforcing confidence in capital generation and shareholder returns. Morgan Stanley stock page
• Neutral Sentiment: Several media reports and analyst notes highlighted Morgan Stanley ahead of earnings, but the main stock driver today is the actual earnings beat rather than the pre-earnings commentary. Morgan Stanley is set to report second-quarter earnings — here’s what the Street expects

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MS shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Erste Group Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Oppenheimer lowered Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.20.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total value of $2,779,935.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. This trade represents a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total transaction of $2,120,758.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,313,622.25. This represents a 6.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MS. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,917,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,648,354,000 after buying an additional 3,364,080 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 10,302,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,829,008,000 after buying an additional 590,457 shares during the period. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 6,326,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,123,124,000 after acquiring an additional 558,552 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,030,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $640,105,000 after acquiring an additional 163,808 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 40.2% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,933,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $466,326,000 after acquiring an additional 841,263 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.