Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $181.8462.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $184.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $177.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

MS opened at $186.41 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $172.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $94.33 and a 1 year high of $188.82. The stock has a market cap of $296.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.12, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.20.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. The company had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 13.85%.The business’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. Analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st were paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley filed for spot Ethereum ETFs and has been active with in?house spot Bitcoin and Solana trust filings — signaling a broadening of its crypto product shelf and potential to capture institutional distribution and fee flows. Morgan Stanley Files for Spot Ethereum ETFs
• Positive Sentiment: MS announced plans to launch a digital wallet in H2 2026 to support tokenized assets — an infrastructure move that complements its ETF filings and may expand custody, trading and advisory revenue opportunities. Morgan Stanley Announces Digital Wallet Launch
• Positive Sentiment: Firm promotions: Morgan Stanley elevated 184 employees to managing director amid a dealmaking revival — this suggests ramped investment banking coverage capacity and potential for higher advisory and M&A fees. Morgan Stanley Appoints 184 New Managing Directors
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst momentum: several outlets and research notes have turned more constructive (Zacks upgrade / other bullish commentary) ahead of MS’s upcoming earnings, supporting sentiment that the firm can beat expectations on wealth management and trading. Morgan Stanley Upgraded to Strong Buy (Zacks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research flagged macro/FX risk around U.S. intervention in Venezuela as a test for the dollar — a market theme that could lift trading volatility (good for trading revenue) but also heighten geopolitical risk. U.S. Intervention in Venezuela a ‘Test for the U.S. Dollar,’ Says Morgan Stanley
• Negative Sentiment: Not all analyst action is universally bullish — a recent note raised MS’s target modestly but kept a neutral rating (Benzinga summary), implying some strategists see limited near?term upside from current levels. That creates mixed signals for investors weighing valuation vs. growth. Analyst note: price target change / neutral rating (Benzinga)

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total transaction of $16,434,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 574,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $94,493,199.24. This represents a 14.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Somerset Trust Co grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 16,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,957,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. BDF Gestion bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,829,000. Central Bank & Trust Co. grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 50,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,031,000 after purchasing an additional 2,629 shares during the period. Finally, Affinity Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth about $226,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Morgan Stanley

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.