Conning Inc. Sells 47,399 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Conning Inc. cut its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 220,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 47,399 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley makes up about 1.2% of Conning Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $34,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its position 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 acquiring 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. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 91.9% during the third quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Abound Wealth Management increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 58.5% during the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley has filed for spot crypto ETFs (Bitcoin and Solana) and is moving into crypto services — a potential new AUM and fee revenue stream that investors view as strategic diversification and distribution capability. Get Ready for Crypto Exposure as Morgan Stanley Joins the ETF Race
• Positive Sentiment: Separate coverage reports that Morgan Stanley plans to launch a cryptocurrency wallet — another revenue/product initiative that could deepen client engagement and capture crypto flows. Morgan Stanley Plans to Launch Cryptocurrency Wallet
• Positive Sentiment: MS’s private-equity arm took a majority stake in engineering firm Olsson — shows continued deal activity from MSPE and potential near-term realized value and longer-term fee/carry upside. Morgan Stanley’s PE unit takes majority stake in engineering firm Olsson
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and market outlets are updating forecasts ahead of Morgan Stanley’s Q4 earnings release (scheduled this week). Expectations and revisions can increase short‑term volatility but also set the stage for upside if MS beats on trading/AUM. Top Wall Street Forecasters Revamp Morgan Stanley Expectations Ahead Of Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre-earnings previews highlight that trading and investment-banking results will be watched closely (those lines drive quarter-to-quarter swings in revenue). This is informational — may amplify moves after the print. Earnings Preview: Morgan Stanley to Report This Week
• Positive Sentiment: Public commentary (Jim Cramer) and analyst write-ups highlight strong recent asset‑gathering at Morgan Stanley — positive signal for recurring fee revenue and wealth management momentum. Jim Cramer Says “The Asset Gathering in Morgan Stanley Has Been Extraordinary”
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market and banking-sector weakness (other banks’ volatility and index declines) is weighing on financial names, increasing downside risk for MS into earnings even if company fundamentals are stable. SPY is down 1.0% today, on BAC stock price movement

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total transaction of $16,434,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.1%

MS opened at $180.77 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $174.13 and a 200-day moving average of $159.09. The company has a market capitalization of $287.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.20. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $94.33 and a fifty-two week high of $188.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on MS. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $211.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

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.