Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $177.00 to $189.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley traded as high as $187.90 and last traded at $187.75, with a volume of 1256644 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $181.90.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on MS. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $198.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, November 24th. Dbs Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.46.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total value of $16,434,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 574,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. This trade represents a 14.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analysts and screens are bullish on MS — a recent article reports a raised price target for Morgan Stanley and elsewhere MS appears on lists of top-ranked stocks expected to beat earnings, reinforcing optimism about near-term EPS beats and valuation upside. Morgan Stanley (MS) Price Target Raised by $18: A Comprehensive Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks includes Morgan Stanley among five top-ranked names likely to beat upcoming earnings, which can attract buyer interest ahead of results. Looking for Earnings Beat? Buy These 5 Top-Ranked Stocks
• Positive Sentiment: Industry recognition and analyst sentiment remain constructive — a survey-style note shows MS with an average analyst rating around “Moderate Buy,” supporting demand for the shares. Morgan Stanley Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Macro/wealth-management tailwind: large banks (JPM, Citi and MS peers) are increasingly recommending spot Bitcoin allocations; broader acceptance of crypto allocations by major wealth channels supports fee opportunities for MS’s wealth and private bank businesses. Bank of America Joins JPMorgan, Citi, Morgan Stanley By Recommending Bitcoin Portfolio Allocation
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s research desk is producing market-moving thematic work (e.g., bullish US market outlook for 2026 and regional energy studies). Those publications boost MS’s revenue mix via research/flows but have indirect and variable effects on firm earnings. US to Drive Stocks in 2026 With 10%-Plus Gain: Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Research note: Morgan Stanley flagged that Venezuela crude could meaningfully increase heavy crude flows — important for energy-sector pricing and clients, but only indirectly relevant to MS’s own fundamentals. American bank forecasts Venezuela crude exports will double
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and analyst activity on third-party names (Auna, ADM, BorgWarner, etc.) underscore MS’s revenue from investment banking and research but are company-agnostic signals rather than direct drivers of MS stock. Morgan Stanley Sees Growth Potential in Auna SA (AUNA)

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MS. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 111.0% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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, Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 3.5%

The company has a market cap of $299.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27, a PEG ratio of 1.40 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. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $170.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $156.50.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.40%. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.88 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st were issued 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 was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

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.