Morgan Stanley $MS Stock Holdings Boosted by Contravisory Investment Management Inc.

Contravisory Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 85.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,213 shares during the quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $1,309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MS. First County Bank CT grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.9% in the third quarter. First County Bank CT now owns 3,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $631,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 55.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,614,000 after buying an additional 3,059 shares in the last quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 89.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 8,591 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,632,000 after buying an additional 4,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 167,020 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,413,000 after buying an additional 790 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.8%

NYSE MS traded down $3.41 on Tuesday, hitting $186.61. 8,200,664 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,158,840. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $151.88 and a fifty-two week high of $232.25. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $207.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $203.20. 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 company has a market cap of $294.33 billion, a PE ratio of 15.09, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.22.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The company’s revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 12.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buy back $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are 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 dividend of $1.15 per share. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MS. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $235.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. UBS Group cut their price target on Morgan Stanley from $260.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, HSBC increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $219.43.

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley plans to support tokenized equities on its alternative trading system, potentially strengthening its position in digital-market infrastructure and expanding future trading opportunities. Morgan Stanley Plans Tokenized Equities Support on Its Alternative Trading System
• Positive Sentiment: Options markets indicate meaningful potential for an earnings-driven move, which could benefit the stock if Morgan Stanley beats expectations or offers constructive guidance on investment banking and wealth management. Options Market Earnings Volatility
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reports third-quarter results on October 14 alongside Bank of America, BlackRock and State Street. Investors are likely to focus on net interest income, asset flows, trading revenue and investment-banking activity. Polymarket Odds on Morgan Stanley Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: The stock’s recent decline followed a cooling in enthusiasm for mergers and acquisitions and initial public offerings, two important drivers of Morgan Stanley’s investment-banking outlook. Options pricing suggests investors see a possible rebound toward $205, but uncertainty remains. Morgan Stanley Stock Selloff Cools Ahead of Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank trimmed its FY2026 EPS forecast slightly to $12.79 from $12.83 and maintained a Hold rating. The reduction reinforces cautious sentiment ahead of results, although the estimate remains close to the broader consensus of $12.66. Morgan Stanley Earnings Estimate Revision
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s market strategist has warned that a stronger dollar, higher Treasury yields and elevated energy prices are tightening financial conditions. Higher rates can weigh on asset valuations, borrowing demand and capital-markets activity. Morgan Stanley Strategist on Bond Market Conditions

Morgan Stanley Profile

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm serving corporations, governments, financial institutions, individuals and other investors. The company provides investment banking and advisory services, including mergers and acquisitions advice, equity and debt underwriting, securities sales and trading, and corporate lending.

Through its Wealth Management business, Morgan Stanley offers financial planning, brokerage, investment advisory and banking services to individual investors, businesses and institutions.