Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Has $94.24 Million Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lessened its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 30.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 530,847 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 232,741 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley makes up about 1.3% of Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $94,241,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 103.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 12,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,019,000 after purchasing an additional 6,448 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Morgan Stanley by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 467,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,273,000 after purchasing an additional 9,056 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 97.4% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 22,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,644,000 after buying an additional 11,311 shares during the period. ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 52.6% in the third quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 113,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,043,000 after buying an additional 39,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, A4 Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the third quarter valued at approximately $855,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $211.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $187.14.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE MS opened at $164.27 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $192.68. The company has a market capitalization of $260.83 billion, a PE ratio of 16.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $170.12 and its 200-day moving average is $169.22.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 39.18%.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total transaction of $3,691,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 127,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,598,777.60. This represents a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Sharon Yeshaya sold 15,838 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.77, for a total value of $2,942,225.26. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 135,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,135,424.08. This trade represents a 10.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506. Corporate 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: Expansion into alternatives (EquityZen deal, private‑credit push) signals a deliberate effort to grow AUM and fee income beyond traditional wealth and capital‑markets businesses — a potential multi‑year revenue driver for MS. Morgan Stanley’s Push Into Alternatives: Is It an AUM Growth Catalyst?
• Positive Sentiment: Report that Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade unit is in talks to lead retail distribution for the SpaceX IPO points to incremental trading revenue and retail franchise wins — a visible boost to investor sentiment about MS’s retail/prime brokerage positioning. Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade in talks to lead SpaceX IPO for small investors
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research is active and influential: the firm has recently named Meta a top pick and highlighted cybersecurity leaders — visible research leadership can drive trading, advisory and underwriting mandates. Those calls help explain positive sentiment around MS. ‘It’s time to buy Meta.’ Why Morgan Stanley sees 45% upside for the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Media coverage cites Morgan Stanley’s planned spot Bitcoin ETF and institutional BTC buying as market catalysts — if launched, the ETF could lift trading volumes and custody/fees for MS, but timing and regulatory outcomes remain uncertain. Bitcoin traders forecast short-term downside even as BTC price chases $68K
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and strategist commentary from Morgan Stanley (advocating a more defensive allocation and higher cash holdings) is driving flow rotation headlines — this can increase demand for fixed‑income products but may temper equity trading over the short term. It’s time to get defensive, say Morgan Stanley strategists. Hold more cash and make these moves.
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing market volatility and geopolitics (S&P correction headlines) create macro risk to MS’s trading and investment‑banking fees; strategists warn rate risks remain — a reminder MS exposure to market cycles can cut both trading and M&A revenue in downturns. Why Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) Is Up Today and Why Morgan Stanley Says the Worst May Be Over

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.