Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Cuts Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ cut its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 268,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,058 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $42,678,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 10.2% in the fourth 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 during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 8,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,226,000 after buying an additional 1,002 shares during the period. Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $804,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Finally, Lyell Wealth Management LP grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.7% during the second quarter. Lyell Wealth Management LP now owns 108,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,252,000 after buying an additional 4,909 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $211.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.93.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is publicly positioning itself to benefit from tech and AI activity — the firm is emphasizing AI and tech IPOs as areas of focus, which investors view as a potential source of higher investment‑banking and trading fees. Morgan Stanley Leans On AI And Tech IPOs As Valuation Stays Watchable
• Positive Sentiment: Firm is hiring blockchain engineers to build multi‑chain infrastructure (Ethereum, Polygon, Canton, Hyperledger) — a strategic tech investment that supports institutional product development, custody, and trading services that could expand fee pools long term. Morgan Stanley Hiring Blockchain Engineers to Integrate Ethereum, Polygon, Canton, and Hyperledger
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research continues to influence market direction — the firm reaffirmed bullish coverage on large AI beneficiaries like Alibaba, demonstrating the shop’s research-driven deal flow and client influence, which supports recurring revenue streams. Morgan Stanley and Jefferies Stay Positive on Alibaba (BABA)
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley analysts warned that AI disruption concerns are spreading to European equities — this highlights the firm’s market research leadership but also flags macro/sector volatility that could either boost trading revenues or weigh on markets depending on how sentiment evolves. AI Disruption Worries Are Spreading to European Stocks, Warns Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: MS research flagged execution risk on Santander’s proposed Webster deal — a sector note that can move bank stocks but is more of a client‑facing research call than a direct MS corporate catalyst. It reinforces MS’s role as an active market commentator. Santander (SAN) and Webster Deal Faces Execution Risk, Says Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and ratings activity (e.g., a2 Milk buy rating, other analyst notes, direct‑lending commentary) show continued analyst and product activity that supports fee diversification but are incremental rather than immediate stock drivers. Buy Rating on a2 Milk Driven by Innovation Pipeline and Chinese Infant Formula Market Tailwinds

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 2.0%

MS stock opened at $171.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $272.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $192.68. The company’s 50 day moving average is $180.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.47.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.3%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 39.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.00, for a total value of $3,966,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 171,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,464,920. This represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the firm’s 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 approximately $65,254,222.62. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506. 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.