Rafferty Asset Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 405,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,528 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $64,537,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 91.9% during the 3rd quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $207.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday, January 16th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $211.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Dbs Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a report on Friday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.93.

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley filed an application with the OCC to charter a new bank unit supporting crypto back‑office activity — a signal management is building regulated infrastructure (custody, settlement) that could open new fee pools if regulators approve and demand scales. Morgan Stanley’s OCC Application Is Wall Street Colonizing Crypto’s Back Office
• Positive Sentiment: Separate reporting says MS is exploring “full‑stack” digital‑asset services (bitcoin custody, trading, lending and yield) — moves that position the bank to monetize institutional crypto demand and diversify revenue beyond traditional trading/advisory. Morgan Stanley Explores Full-Stack Digital Asset Services, Including Bitcoin Lending
• Positive Sentiment: MS appears among major institutions now advising modest Bitcoin allocations (1–5%) for portfolios — that endorsement (and MS research coverage) supports ongoing client demand and validates the bank’s strategy to offer crypto products. Bank of America, Morgan Stanley Support Bitcoin Stakes
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley disclosed a roughly 4.25% voting stake in Siemens Energy — a portfolio/strategic holding that is newsworthy but not an immediate operating catalyst for MS core businesses. Morgan Stanley Discloses 4.25% Voting Stake in Siemens Energy
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s direct‑lending arm reported Q4 results and declared a dividend — a reminder MS has sizable alternative‑assets exposure (private credit) that supports fee income but also ties the franchise to credit‑mark volatility. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Posts Q4 Results, Declares Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Primary negative driver today is a sector‑wide risk‑off selloff hitting large banks; MS is moving with peers as investors rotate out of cyclical financials amid macro/A.I. recession‑narrative fears rather than fresh company news. Morgan Stanley slides as risk-off selling hits big banks again
• Negative Sentiment: High‑profile insider and executive selling (documented filings discussed in market commentary) is amplifying caution; heavy insider dispositions can weigh on sentiment even if legally executed. Morgan Stanley slides as risk-off selling hits big banks again

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 6.4%

MS stock opened at $166.20 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $94.33 and a one year high of $192.68. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $179.84 and its 200 day moving average is $167.06. The firm has a market cap of $263.89 billion, a PE ratio of 16.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.20.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 357,342 shares in the company, valued at $65,254,222.62. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.00, for a total transaction of $3,966,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 171,005 shares in the company, valued at $31,464,920. This represents a 11.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.