Galaxy Digital Capital Management GP LLC Buys 7,401 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Galaxy Digital Capital Management GP LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 298.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,401 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for 1.7% of Galaxy Digital Capital Management GP LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Galaxy Digital Capital Management GP LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MS. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 4,216 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 3,181 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $565,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 3,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $695,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of MS stock opened at $214.11 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $136.17 and a 1 year high of $232.25. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $213.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $189.97. The company has a market cap of $337.71 billion, a PE ratio of 17.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.23.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS 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 analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 15.65%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a $1.15 dividend. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is 37.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $214.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Dbs Bank upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.50.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s recent earnings results were strong, with the firm beating estimates on both EPS and revenue and posting robust year-over-year growth, which supports the stock’s longer-term fundamental case.
• Positive Sentiment: The company continues to receive constructive Wall Street commentary, including a “Moderate Buy” consensus and recent bullish analyst coverage tied to its earnings power and capital markets franchise.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent headlines also pointed to Morgan Stanley’s wealth management unit attracting new assets tied to SpaceX IPO interest, which reinforces the strength of its wealth and investment management businesses.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several unrelated market stories involving Morgan Stanley analyst calls on other stocks, plus broader AI/capex and earnings-driven volatility across large-cap tech and financials, may be influencing sentiment around MS indirectly.

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.