Morgan Stanley $MS is Cullen Capital Management LLC’s 8th Largest Position

Cullen Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,562,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 73,422 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley comprises 2.7% of Cullen Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Cullen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $248,390,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew 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 raised its position in 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 acquiring an additional 749,150 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at about $2,234,883,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 13,438,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,894,023,000 after acquiring an additional 374,711 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,980,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,546,659,000 after acquiring an additional 28,420 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s Q4 strength and commentary on a rebound in investment banking have prompted analysts to re‑rate the stock and revisit valuation, supporting longer‑term upside. Morgan Stanley (MS) Valuation Check After Strong Q4 2025 Results And Rebound In Investment Banking
• Positive Sentiment: RBC raised its price target on Morgan Stanley after the strong fourth‑quarter results, a sign some firms see room for multiple expansion or earnings traction. RBC boosts Morgan Stanley (MS) price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Firm initiatives and investor outreach continue — Morgan Stanley hosted its Inclusive & Sustainable Ventures Demo Day, highlighting business development and franchise initiatives (positive for PR / long‑term pipeline but unlikely to move near‑term trading materially). Morgan Stanley Inclusive & Sustainable Ventures Hosts Global Demo Day
• Neutral Sentiment: Market rotation and sector flows reported by E*TRADE/Morgan Stanley clients (sector rotation study) may be rebalancing asset managers’ bank exposures — a technical factor affecting intraday moves. E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley Releases Monthly Sector Rotation Study
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and trade commentary have drawn attention — media pieces covering insider sales / trading views can weigh on sentiment even when fundamentals are solid. That dynamic has likely contributed to downward pressure. Morgan Stanley Insider Sale And Trade Views Shape Risk And Value Narrative

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Charles A. Smith sold 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.08, for a total value of $1,547,680.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 119,128 shares in the company, valued at $21,690,826.24. This represents a 6.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total transaction of $3,691,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 127,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,598,777.60. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on MS. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $207.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Zacks Research upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $157.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.93.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $179.94 on Thursday. 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 has a 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $192.68. The firm has a market cap of $285.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.62, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s fifty day moving average is $180.22 and its 200 day moving average is $163.46.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.92% and a net margin of 14.09%.The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict 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 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 2.2%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

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.