Profund Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Profund Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 19.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,190 shares during the quarter. Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $2,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: CICC Research lifted its price target on Morgan Stanley (MS) to $200 and reiterated an Outperform view, reinforcing bullish sentiment from analysts. MarketScreener
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s strategists said the stock market can still benefit from AI-driven growth, but they also warned that a bond-market selloff could pressure risk assets and trigger a broader pullback. Financial Post
• Neutral Sentiment: Another Morgan Stanley note said the Fed may stay on hold before cutting rates again in 2027, which reflects a measured macro view rather than a direct company-specific catalyst. TheStreet

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS stock opened at $189.58 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $123.88 and a 52-week high of $197.50. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $176.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $175.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $299.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.The business’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 169,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,313,622.25. This trade represents a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares in the company, valued at $69,224,370.48. This trade represents a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. HSBC increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.95.

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.