Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Acquired by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 12.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,016 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,421 shares during the quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $6,960,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $206.26.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 14,690 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.24, for a total transaction of $2,779,935.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 365,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,224,370.48. The trade was a 3.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total value of $9,744,068.12. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares in the company, valued at $53,209,159.78. The trade was a 15.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 77,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,644,762. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $192.99 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $172.76 and its 200-day moving average is $173.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $304.40 billion, a PE ratio of 17.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $121.46 and a 12-month high of $194.83.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $20.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 14.65%.Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: DBS Bank raised its price target on Morgan Stanley to $220 from $185, signaling more upside potential. DBS Bank price target update
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group Bank lifted FY2027 earnings estimates for Morgan Stanley, while keeping a Buy rating, reinforcing confidence in longer-term earnings power.
• Positive Sentiment: UBS also increased its Morgan Stanley price target to $214 from $196, adding to the wave of bullish revisions. UBS price target update

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.