Morgan Stanley $MS Stake Increased by Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 32.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,433 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,532 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,181,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,607,000 after purchasing an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 69.0% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 8,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,263,000 after purchasing an additional 3,661 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 90.9% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,378,000 after buying an additional 7,688 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 6.3% in the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 263,575 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,127,000 after buying an additional 15,623 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 7.8% during the second quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,805,000 after buying an additional 3,807 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Oppenheimer lowered Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 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, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.75.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strategic growth initiative: Morgan Stanley launched the U.S. Innovation Infrastructure Initiative, targeting approximately $1.5 trillion in capital to support U.S. infrastructure, innovation and national-security priorities. The program could expand the firm’s role in long-term capital raising, investment banking and asset management. How Could Morgan Stanley Shape U.S. Growth With Its $1.5 Trillion Initiative?
• Positive Sentiment: Real-estate investment: Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s real-estate funds acquired a 1.5-million-square-foot Kansas City logistics facility for $158.5 million. The transaction adds to the firm’s alternative-investment platform and supports fee-generating asset growth. Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing Acquires Kansas City Facility
• Positive Sentiment: Higher earnings expectations: Erste Group Bank raised its FY2027 EPS forecast for Morgan Stanley to $13.70 from $13.65 and maintained a Buy rating. The estimate is above the broader consensus of $12.79, reinforcing optimism around capital-markets and wealth-management earnings. Erste Group Raises Morgan Stanley EPS Estimate
• Neutral Sentiment: Investment-banking outlook: Commentary from Jim Cramer and comparisons with Bank of America point to stronger M&A activity, trading volumes and investment-banking conditions as potential catalysts for Morgan Stanley. However, these are broad industry views rather than new company-specific guidance. Jim Cramer Recommends Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and positioning: Morgan Stanley is trading near its 12-month high and above its 200-day moving average, which may encourage investors to lock in gains. The stock’s elevated valuation leaves it sensitive to any slowdown in deal activity, markets or wealth-management growth.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $215.03 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $339.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.38, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.22. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $141.03 and a twelve month high of $232.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $216.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $192.31.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 15.65%.The firm had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.19%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.