Michael Pizzi Sells 20,000 Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Stock

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) insider Michael Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total transaction of $3,691,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 127,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,598,777.60. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS traded down $0.32 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $183.00. The stock had a trading volume of 8,960,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,037,536. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $176.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $160.64. The company has a market capitalization of $290.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.20. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $94.33 and a fifty-two week high of $192.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced 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 16.92% and a net margin of 14.09%.The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley was named one of four lead banks on a potential blockbuster SpaceX IPO — a high?profile mandate that would generate sizable underwriting and advisory fees and reinforce MS’s standing in tech/A&D deal origination. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Recent Q4 results (announced Jan. 15) beat estimates on both EPS and revenue, with revenue up ~10% year?over?year — supporting consensus that MS can grow fee income and maintain healthy margins into 2026. Earnings / Market Data
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage and deal involvement: Morgan Stanley is publicly tied to underwriting and coverage wins (e.g., backing smaller biotech deals and SMID?cap biotech coverage), which points to ongoing investment?banking and capital?markets activity that supports revenue visibility. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research is raising macro themes (e.g., U.S. policy and potential de?dollarisation) that may shape markets and cross?border flows but don’t directly change MS’s near?term fundamentals. Investors should monitor how macro shifts affect capital markets activity. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional moves: filings show Morgan Stanley trimming or changing stakes in select smaller names (e.g., ceasing to be a substantial holder in a mining issuer). These are routine portfolio actions for the firm’s asset?management/institutional desks and have limited direct impact on MS stock. Article Title

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 11,311 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.8% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 581,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $92,407,000 after acquiring an additional 21,458 shares in the last quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.0% in the third quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 87,236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,867,000 after purchasing an additional 9,345 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 45.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 30,854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,905,000 after purchasing an additional 9,619 shares during the period. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 8.2% during the second quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 6,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $881,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Dbs Bank raised Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. HSBC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $207.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.93.

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.