LM Advisors LLC Takes $1.28 Million Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

LM Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 6,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,284,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Purpose Unlimited Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 143.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Atlatl Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its gold outlook, arguing that gold’s recent breakout could extend higher and forecasting prices above $5,000 per ounce by 2027. A stronger commodities outlook could benefit the firm’s trading, wealth-management and investment-banking businesses. Morgan Stanley Doubles Down on Gold After Breakout
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reportedly selected Dallas for a major expansion outside New York City. The move could improve long-term operating flexibility, expand access to talent and support growth in a lower-cost financial center. Morgan Stanley said to pick Dallas for expansion outside NYC
• Positive Sentiment: The firm continues to position itself in emerging investment products, including an Ethereum exchange-traded product that offers staking yield. This may broaden fee-generating opportunities and strengthen Morgan Stanley’s digital-asset platform.
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s research highlighted a projected 38-gigawatt power shortfall for AI data centers, identifying potential opportunities in industrial, energy and infrastructure financing. The report may support future advisory and capital-markets activity, but it does not represent a direct earnings catalyst. Morgan Stanley Says AI Data Centers Face a 38-Gigawatt Power Gap
• Negative Sentiment: The Ethereum product also exposes investors to staking-related risks, including slashing penalties, provider risk and withdrawal delays. These concerns could limit adoption or increase reputational and operational risk. Morgan Stanley Put Ethereum Yield in an ETP. Who Carries the Risk?
• Negative Sentiment: Scotiabank hired Morgan Stanley’s top Canadian banker, a competitive setback that could affect Morgan Stanley’s Canadian investment-banking and precious-metals operations. Scotiabank hires Morgan Stanley’s top Canada banker Richard Tory

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 3.4%

NYSE MS opened at $214.42 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $144.67 and a 52 week high of $232.25. The company has a market capitalization of $338.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $217.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $194.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan 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 reacquire up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were paid a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $187.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Dbs Bank lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.75.

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.