Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC Raises Stock Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 9.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,416 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $8,330,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,253,554,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361,940 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 103,854,751 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,437,334,000 after purchasing an additional 539,544 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,070,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,786,350,000 after purchasing an additional 534,708 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,018,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,441,505,000 after purchasing an additional 524,189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.5% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,326,676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,686,881,000 after purchasing an additional 87,533 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.75.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s latest quarterly results remain a key support: earnings per share of $3.46 and revenue of $21.35 billion exceeded consensus estimates, with revenue rising 27.1% year over year. The results highlighted strong operating momentum across the financial-services business.
• Positive Sentiment: The firm’s launch of a Morgan Stanley Bitcoin Trust ETF gives investors new access to cryptocurrency exposure and expands the company’s asset-management product lineup. The offering could provide additional fee revenue and strengthen Morgan Stanley’s position in digital assets. Better Buy: iShares Bitcoin ETF vs. Morgan Stanley Bitcoin ETF
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street’s outlook is cautiously optimistic. Analysts generally see further upside potential, but recent commentary suggests the stock may be fairly valued or slightly overvalued after its substantial multiyear gains and the new crypto ETF launch. Morgan Stanley Stock May Be Slightly Overvalued Following New Crypto ETF Launch
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent institutional activity shows Morgan Stanley adding to several growth and infrastructure-related holdings while reducing positions in others. These portfolio changes are not a direct company catalyst but reflect ongoing active investment management and may contribute modestly to market attention.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE MS opened at $218.68 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $140.51 and a twelve month high of $232.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $216.16 and a 200 day moving average of $191.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $344.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.68, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.22.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 15.65%.The business 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 company posted $2.13 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a $1.15 dividend. 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 is Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.19%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Morgan Stanley

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.