The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 1,131,471 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 48.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,227,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,131,471 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.08% of Morgan Stanley worth $201,946,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MS. Purpose Unlimited Inc. bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on MS. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Citizens Jmp restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their target price on Morgan Stanley from $221.00 to $197.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Two 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 given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.50.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley launched the MSSE Ethereum Trust and MSOL Solana Trust on NYSE Arca. Both products charge a 0.14% expense ratio and intend to stake assets, passing staking rewards to investors. The products expand Morgan Stanley’s digital-asset platform beyond its bitcoin offering and could generate new fee revenue. Morgan Stanley expands crypto lineup with Ether, Solana ETPs
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlighted Morgan Stanley’s strong position in the investment-banking and trading boom. The firm advised on 15 construction-related transactions worth $81.3 billion in the first half of 2026, reinforcing its competitive position in mergers and acquisitions. Morgan Stanley leads construction M&A advisory in H1 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley strategists remain constructive on artificial-intelligence investment, arguing that major technology companies’ substantial AI spending could ultimately produce strong returns and improve profit margins. This supports continued advisory, financing and trading opportunities for MS, although the view primarily benefits its corporate clients. Morgan Stanley says AI investment could generate strong returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is among the anchor investors in Manipal Health Enterprises’ planned Indian IPO, which raised Rs 4,167 crore from anchor investors. The deal may provide advisory, underwriting or distribution revenue, but its near-term financial impact on MS was not disclosed. Manipal Health IPO anchor investment
• Negative Sentiment: The positive company-specific news has not offset likely profit-taking and broader risk reduction across financial and technology stocks. Morgan Stanley’s shares remain near their 52-week high, leaving valuation and market-sentiment concerns as potential reasons investors are selling despite the firm’s strong prior earnings and expanding fee opportunities.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $211.82 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $214.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $190.37. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $136.17 and a 1 year high of $232.25. The company has a market capitalization of $334.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.23.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The firm had revenue of $21.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.68 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a $1.15 dividend. This is an increase from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.34%.

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.