Northern Financial Advisors Inc Has $428,000 Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Northern Financial Advisors Inc trimmed its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 55.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,409 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,942 shares during the period. Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $428,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 27,321,214 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,343,523,000 after purchasing an additional 167,487 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.9% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 24,494,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,893,590,000 after purchasing an additional 448,960 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 6.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,260,650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,267,847,000 after purchasing an additional 822,120 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.8% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,712,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,543,831,000 after purchasing an additional 354,871 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,083,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,443,926,000 after purchasing an additional 249,023 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on MS to $225 and reiterated a Buy, citing management messaging and business momentum — a clear analyst endorsement that can attract buyers. BofA Lifts PT on Morgan Stanley (MS) to $225 From $220
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its MS price target to $220 and kept an Outperform rating — another institutional upgrade that supports near-term upside. BMO Capital adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley to 220
• Positive Sentiment: Spot Bitcoin ETF flows remain strong across the market and Morgan Stanley’s MSBT has taken meaningful inflows — supports AUM/fee narratives for Wealth & Asset Management. Spot Bitcoin ETFs Add $996M as Flows Near Record High
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s research franchise remains active (initiating/adjusting coverage on large telecom and tech names). This underscores a healthy research business (good long term for commissions/research fees) but is not an immediate earnings catalyst. Morgan Stanley Assumes Coverage of T-Mobile US (TMUS)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Morgan Stanley insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares (~$2.1M) per an SEC filing — a near-term negative for sentiment even if driven by personal liquidity. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Insider Eric Grossman Sells 11,118 Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Additional SEC-filed insider sales were reported (multi-million-dollar disposals highlighted in press coverage), which some investors may view as a cautionary signal for near-term upside. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Insider Sells $9,744,068.12 in Stock

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:MS opened at $190.55 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $169.00 and a 200-day moving average of $171.10. The company has a market cap of $301.33 billion, a PE ratio of 17.26, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.19. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $104.78 and a one year high of $194.59.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 11.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $219.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $201.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total value of $6,020,286.48. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 357,342 shares in the company, valued at $65,254,222.62. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the sale, the insider 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 110,444 shares of company stock worth $20,665,049 over the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Morgan Stanley

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.