Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Buys 4,129 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 5.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 77,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,129 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $12,254,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the first quarter valued at about $3,672,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 11.6% during the first quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $737,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares during the period. GatePass Capital LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $211,000. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 13.4% in the 1st quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,422,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $398,635,000 after acquiring an additional 287,056 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. Quadrant Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $289,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer cut Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Two investment 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 given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $220.80.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.1%

MS stock opened at $215.27 on Monday. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $136.17 and a 1-year high of $232.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The business’s 50 day moving average is $211.69 and its 200-day moving average is $188.77. The firm has a market cap of $339.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.23.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 15.65%.Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.34%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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 buy up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reported blockbuster Q2 2026 results, with record net revenues of about $21.3 billion and earnings that beat expectations, reinforcing confidence in the company’s core businesses. Morgan Stanley (MS) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenues and Strategic Growth …
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share, a 15% increase from the prior quarter, which signals confidence in earnings power and capital return capacity.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the earnings release, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising its price target to $250 and Erste Group lifting FY2027 EPS estimates, suggesting more upside may remain. Morgan Stanley had its price target raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $225.00 to $250.00
• Neutral Sentiment: New reports also pointed to Morgan Stanley’s E*TRADE crypto rollout and AI-related market activity, which could help broaden its platform appeal over time but are not likely the main short-term drivers of the stock move.
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles noted a downgrade-style view from Seeking Alpha and a JPMorgan target below the current share price, which may temper enthusiasm at the margin even after the strong earnings beat. Morgan Stanley Maintains Hold on Comstock Resources, Keeps Price Target Unchanged at $16 Amid Cash Outspend and Funding Concerns

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.