FY2026 EPS Forecast for Morgan Stanley Lifted by Analyst

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) – Equities research analysts at Erste Group Bank upped their FY2026 earnings estimates for shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, July 15th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now forecasts that the financial services provider will earn $12.07 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $11.97. Erste Group Bank has a “Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Morgan Stanley’s current full-year earnings is $12.55 per share.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer lowered Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wolfe Research decreased their target price on Morgan Stanley from $221.00 to $197.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. CICC Research raised their price target on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.80.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 0.1%

Morgan Stanley stock opened at $215.27 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $339.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.40, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.23. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $136.17 and a fifty-two week high of $232.25. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $211.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $188.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The firm had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,607,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 69.0% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 8,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,263,000 after buying an additional 3,661 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 90.9% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,378,000 after buying an additional 7,688 shares in the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 6.3% during the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 263,575 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,127,000 after acquiring an additional 15,623 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 7.8% during the second quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,805,000 after acquiring an additional 3,807 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.34%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reported blockbuster Q2 2026 results, with record net revenues of about $21.3 billion and earnings that beat expectations, reinforcing confidence in the company’s core businesses. Morgan Stanley (MS) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenues and Strategic Growth …
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share, a 15% increase from the prior quarter, which signals confidence in earnings power and capital return capacity.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the earnings release, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising its price target to $250 and Erste Group lifting FY2027 EPS estimates, suggesting more upside may remain. Morgan Stanley had its price target raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $225.00 to $250.00
• Neutral Sentiment: New reports also pointed to Morgan Stanley’s E*TRADE crypto rollout and AI-related market activity, which could help broaden its platform appeal over time but are not likely the main short-term drivers of the stock move.
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles noted a downgrade-style view from Seeking Alpha and a JPMorgan target below the current share price, which may temper enthusiasm at the margin even after the strong earnings beat. Morgan Stanley Maintains Hold on Comstock Resources, Keeps Price Target Unchanged at $16 Amid Cash Outspend and Funding Concerns

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.