Contravisory Investment Management Inc. Has $647,000 Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Contravisory Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3,946.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,552 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $647,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Central Bank & Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.1% during the third quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,843 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $929,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 3,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $496,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 2,616 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $416,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morgan Stanley News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s stock is benefitting from positive market commentary that highlights the firm’s recent outperformance and investor interest. A MarketBeat/Zacks write-up notes MS outpaced a broader market upswing today, reflecting supportive momentum for the bank-stock cohort following solid fundamentals. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and favorable blue‑chip rankings are supporting the tape — coverage summaries today flagged a Street upgrade/positive ranking for Morgan Stanley that can boost sentiment and attract momentum flows from funds that follow analyst action. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Income-focused investors are getting a reminder that MS remains attractive as a dividend paying bank — a Zacks piece outlines why Morgan Stanley’s dividend profile and payout stability make it appealing for yield-seeking investors, which can underpin demand from income funds. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s research influence is visible in market moves elsewhere — the firm’s iPhone survey and other sector notes (e.g., on Apple) keep MS prominent in market headlines, which supports brand/flow effects but is not a direct driver of MS’s core earnings. Article
• Negative Sentiment: A headwind: Bloomberg/Yahoo report that Morgan Stanley (with Cliffwater) capped withdrawals from large private‑credit funds after redemptions exceeded limits. That signals redemption pressure in alternatives the firm manages — a reputational and potential earnings risk if flows or valuations remain challenged — and it may cap upside until clarity on fund liquidity and investor confidence returns. Article

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $164.26 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $172.91 and its 200 day moving average is $168.80. Morgan Stanley has a 12-month low of $94.33 and a 12-month high of $192.68. The stock has a market cap of $260.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.09, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 analyst estimates of $17.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MS shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Evercore cut Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $211.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.14.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total value of $3,691,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider 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. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 280,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,501,921.22. This trade represents a 9.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.