Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Purchased by Cresset Asset Management LLC

Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 8.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 40,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,140 shares during the quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $6,396,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 65.2% in the third quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 91.9% during the 3rd quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 57.1% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE MS opened at $162.45 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.91, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $178.63 and a 200 day moving average of $167.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $192.68.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 14.09%.The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total value of $5,569,194.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 280,481 shares in the company, valued at $51,501,921.22. This trade represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $6,020,286.48. Following the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Dbs Bank upgraded Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.93.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Advanced filing to launch a spot Bitcoin trust — Morgan Stanley amended its S‑1 for a spot BTC Trust and named Coinbase and BNY Mellon as custody/administration partners, moving the firm closer to offering a passive bitcoin ETF. That product could create recurring fee revenue and expand MS’s asset-management offerings in crypto. Morgan Stanley taps Coinbase and BNY for Bitcoin ETF custody
• Neutral Sentiment: Provision of major loan facility to Core Scientific — MS provided an initial $500M facility (expandable to $1B) to Core Scientific to fund AI/data‑center build‑out. The deal generates origination and arrangement revenue but also increases exposure to a cyclical, crypto‑adjacent borrower; impact to credit metrics depends on future draw/repayment and collateral. Core Scientific secures up to $1B credit from Morgan Stanley for data centers
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst activity and ongoing franchise work — Morgan Stanley research continues to publish sector calls and price‑target moves (e.g., coverage updates on Brookfield and others). These are normal franchise activities that support fee generation but are not large single‑day catalysts for MS equity. Morgan Stanley Raises its Price Target on Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. (BAM) to $63
• Negative Sentiment: Companywide layoffs (~2,500 roles, ~3% of workforce) across investment banking, trading, wealth and investment management — the cuts, reported broadly today, signal immediate cost reductions but also raise investor questions about revenue trends, AI‑driven restructuring and execution risk during the transition. That announcement appears to be a primary driver of today’s negative sentiment. Morgan Stanley Sheds 2,500 Employees in Companywide Layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Shares underperforming the broader market after headlines — market coverage notes MS is down more than the index as investors digest the layoff and restructuring news along with franchise moves. Morgan Stanley (MS) Declines More Than Market: Some Information for Investors

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.