Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Sells 6,011 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lowered its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,123,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,011 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned 0.07% of Morgan Stanley worth $198,311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 29,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,281,000 after purchasing an additional 8,512 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 103.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 12,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,019,000 after purchasing an additional 6,448 shares during the last quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 467,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,273,000 after purchasing an additional 9,056 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 97.4% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 22,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,644,000 after purchasing an additional 11,311 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ABN Amro Investment Solutions raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 52.6% in the 3rd quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 113,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,043,000 after purchasing an additional 39,104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 11,118 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.75, for a total value of $2,120,758.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 169,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,313,622.25. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 51,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.59, for a total transaction of $9,744,068.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 282,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,209,159.78. This trade represents a 15.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 110,444 shares of company stock worth $20,665,049. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $201.33.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $189.21 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $169.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $171.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $299.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.19. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $107.97 and a 52 week high of $194.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $20.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.23 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 17.89%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.60 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 11.8 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 36.23%.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong Q1 results and capital actions — MS reported a solid Q1 (beat on EPS and revenue), confirmed a $1.00 quarterly dividend and continued share repurchases while completing new debt issuance; management framed the quarter and capital moves as constructive for returns. Morgan Stanley’s Strong Q1 Earnings And Capital Moves Could Be A Game Changer For Morgan Stanley (MS)
• Positive Sentiment: BofA raises MS price target to $225 — Bank of America lifted its PT and reiterated a Buy, reinforcing buy-side analyst momentum that can support demand for the shares. BofA Lifts PT on Morgan Stanley (MS) to $225 From $220
• Positive Sentiment: BMO raises PT to $220 and keeps Outperform — another institutional upgrade that can attract buyers and help re-rate the stock. BMO Capital Markets Increases Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target to $220.00
• Positive Sentiment: MS-backed spot Bitcoin ETF (MSBT) is drawing flows — continued inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs (including MS’s product) bolster fee and AUM narratives for MS’s wealth and asset-management businesses. Spot Bitcoin ETFs Add $996M as Flows Near Record High
• Neutral Sentiment: Research franchise in focus — Morgan Stanley continues active analyst coverage and new initiations (e.g., T?Mobile), which highlights its research/IPO/coverage capabilities; useful for long-term fee visibility but not an immediate earnings lever. Morgan Stanley Assumes Coverage of T-Mobile US (TMUS)
• Neutral Sentiment: Ongoing analyst activity from MS on other names (TCS, Exxon etc.) underscores the firm’s market intelligence role — relevant for franchise value over time but indirect for MS stock near term. Morgan Stanley reiterates ‘Overweight’ rating on TCS
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale by Eric F. Grossman — MS insider Eric Grossman sold 11,118 shares (~$2.1M), a flagged transaction that can sap sentiment even if it reflects personal liquidity rather than firm fundamentals. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Insider Eric Grossman Sells 11,118 Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Additional SEC-filed insider sales reported — other recent disclosures show more insider dispositions that may amplify investor caution near-term. Eric Grossman Sells 11,118 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) 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.