Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Raises Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 194,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $30,923,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth $2,234,883,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $343,236,000. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 23.4% in the 2nd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,357,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,318,055,000 after acquiring an additional 1,776,544 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 319.7% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,092,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $294,727,000 after acquiring an additional 1,593,774 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 18.1% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,623,305 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,355,537,000 after acquiring an additional 1,476,372 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 5.7%

MS opened at $191.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $192.16. The stock has a market cap of $303.62 billion, a PE ratio of 19.59, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a 50 day moving average of $174.68 and a 200-day moving average of $159.32.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 13.85%.The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on MS shares. HSBC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $145.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.85.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat and strong fees: MS posted $2.68 EPS (above estimates) and reported revenue of ~$17.9B with investment‑banking revenue rising ~47% year‑over‑year — a clear driver behind the rally. Morgan Stanley Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Earnings Results
• Positive Sentiment: Sector/peer momentum: Strong results at peers (Goldman, others) and a broader market lift from chip/tech earnings helped financial ETFs and bank stocks, amplifying Morgan Stanley’s move. Stocks Finish Higher As Chip, Bank Stocks Drive Optimism
• Positive Sentiment: Strong forward pipeline: Management and street coverage point to a bigger 2026 IPO/deal pipeline and ongoing wealth‑management growth (AUM ~ $9.3T), suggesting revenues could stay elevated if markets and deal activity persist. Morgan Stanley Sees 2026 IPO Wave, CFO Flags Bigger Pipeline, Broader Dealmaking
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions are mixed: many firms reaffirm buy/overweight stances or raise targets on banks, but some note that strong fundamentals may already be priced in — raising the risk of “sell the news” moves after the beat. Morgan Stanley Q4 Review: Strong Fundamentals Priced In (Downgrade)
• Negative Sentiment: Cash‑flow and insider selling flagged: while EPS beat, Quiver/filings flagged a material swing to negative operating cash flow (roughly -$3.3B) and notable insider sales over recent months — items that could concern value/longer‑term investors. Morgan Stanley (MS) Releases Q4 2025 Earnings: EPS Beats, Revenue Misses; Operating Cash Flow Turns Deeply Negative

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. This 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 link. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.