Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Has $37.69 Million Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 180,283 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,417 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $37,686,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 143.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 55.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $217.31 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $141.03 and a 12-month high of $232.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $342.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $216.84 and a 200-day moving average of $193.00.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MS shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $187.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Bank of America raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. CICC Research boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Dbs Bank upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.75.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan increased their holdings of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs during the second quarter and added exposure to Solana and XRP products. The activity reinforces Morgan Stanley’s expansion into digital-asset products, which could support future fee and client-asset growth. Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan load up on crypto ETFs
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is among five banks advising Carlyle-backed Quest Global on a potential India IPO of up to $1 billion. The mandate could generate advisory and underwriting fees while highlighting the firm’s international capital-markets franchise. Quest Global selects banks for India IPO
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised its earnings estimates for Morgan Stanley, providing a supportive analyst signal following the company’s strong recent quarterly results. Erste Group lifts Morgan Stanley earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley adopted a more constructive view of U.S. IT hardware, citing “chipflation” and faster enterprise spending. The research may benefit the firm’s advisory and trading activity, but it is not a direct change to Morgan Stanley’s earnings outlook. Morgan Stanley turns bullish on IT hardware
• Negative Sentiment: A critical report on Morgan Stanley’s direct-lending business raised concerns about recent results and credit-market risks. Although details were limited, the negative coverage may weigh on sentiment toward the firm’s private-credit operations. Morgan Stanley direct lending results

Morgan Stanley Company 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.