Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 4,172 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 30,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,172 shares during the quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $4,841,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MS. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,354,142 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 24,045,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,387,005,000 after buying an additional 749,150 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at about $2,234,883,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% in 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 period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% during 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:MS opened at $168.73 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 12 month low of $94.33 and a 12 month high of $192.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $267.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.53, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $179.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $166.79.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released 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. The company had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The business’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.18%.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Market coverage notes the stock is outperforming peers today, reflecting renewed investor interest in the firm. Morgan Stanley (MS) Rises Higher Than Market: Key Facts
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive on major financial names and list Morgan Stanley among favored ways to play an M&A upcycle — a key revenue tailwind for MS’s investment banking and advisory franchises. Morgan Stanley or Evercore: Which is a Smarter Bet Amid M&A Upcycle?
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s research highlighting a “reindustrialization renaissance” tied to AI-driven capex reinforces the firm’s positioning to benefit from higher corporate advisory and trading activity tied to the AI cycle. That thematic research can boost MS’s fees and trading flow. Morgan Stanley hails rare ‘reindustrialization renaissance’ of AI economy—but it’s better for computers than humans
• Positive Sentiment: Deal activity within Morgan Stanley’s private-equity arm signals continued fee generation and deal flow (MS Capital Partners completed an acquisition), a modest but visible positive for firm-wide fees. Morgan Stanley Capital Partners Acquires Security 101
• Neutral Sentiment: Elevated investor attention/search interest in MS is being reported — higher attention can increase volume and intraday moves but is not a fundamental change. Investors Heavily Search Morgan Stanley (MS): Here is What You Need to Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Active analyst coverage at the firm (e.g., internal price‑target changes on other names) shows Morgan Stanley remains a major broker-dealer and research house — supportive for franchise credibility but indirect for MS stock. Morgan Stanley Slashes IONQ Price Target Ahead of Q4 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Lingering concerns that hit shares earlier this week — including commentary about AI risks to borrowers and elevated advisor recruitment/compensation costs — remain watch‑points; they can cap upside if costs or credit worries resurface. Why Morgan Stanley Stock Dropped on Monday Morgan Stanley’s Advisor Recruiting Costs Pile Up

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on MS. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Evercore lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a report on Friday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.93.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 357,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,254,222.62. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.00, for a total transaction of $3,966,120.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 171,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,464,920. This trade represents a 11.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.