UMB Bank n.a. Reduces Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

UMB Bank n.a. decreased its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 166,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,709 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $26,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,123,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,779,734,000 after buying an additional 1,354,142 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.2% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 24,045,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,387,005,000 after buying an additional 749,150 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,234,883,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 13,438,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,894,023,000 after buying an additional 374,711 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,980,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,546,659,000 after acquiring an additional 28,420 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights Morgan Stanley’s wealth & asset-management business as a durable, recurring-revenue engine that now accounts for the majority of firm revenues — a structural strength that supports more predictable fee income and helps justify a higher multiple for MS. MS Wealth & Asset Management Moat
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat/AmericanBankingNews notes the brokerage consensus on MS is “Moderate Buy,” reflecting broad analyst support after the company’s January quarter results and forward outlook — analyst backing tends to support upward price moves. Consensus Recommendation: Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: President Trump’s reported selection of former Fed governor Kevin Warsh as the nominee for Fed chair (Warsh has Morgan Stanley banking ties) is being discussed in the market; any perceived “connection” is indirect and more reputational than financial for MS, so impact is uncertain/likely muted. Warsh Named as Fed Chair
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes and commentary by Morgan Stanley strategists (e.g., observations on bond-market dislocations and sector calls) underline the firm’s active research and trading flow — positive for fee and trading revenue over time but not an immediate catalyst. Morgan Stanley Exec on Bond Market
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: MS insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares at about $182.61 (~$6.0M). The trade reduces his stake materially (reported ~8.45% of his holdings) — sizable insider sales can create short-term selling pressure or signal personal liquidity needs, though one sale alone is not definitive about firm fundamentals. Insider Sale Filing

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total value of $6,020,286.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 357,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,254,222.62. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total transaction of $5,569,194.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 280,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,501,921.22. The trade was a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $211.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $157.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Three 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.93.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE:MS opened at $182.81 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $192.68. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $179.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $162.57. The company has a market cap of $290.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 39.18%.

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.