Perpetual Ltd Buys 210,301 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Perpetual Ltd raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 3,945.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 215,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 210,301 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $34,277,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MS. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,607,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Tradition Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 14.7% in the first quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,181 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 13.2% during the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $770,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares during the period. CW Advisors LLC increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 7.9% during the first quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 29,516 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,455,000 after acquiring an additional 2,155 shares during the period. Finally, Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in Morgan Stanley by 24.2% in the 1st quarter. Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 612 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $176.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $281.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.22. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $94.33 and a 1 year high of $181.98. The business’s 50-day moving average is $166.72 and its 200-day moving average is $152.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.73. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.40%. The company had revenue of $17.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.03%.

Morgan Stanley News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: MS is widely reported as a front‑runner to lead the SpaceX IPO — a lead role would bring large underwriting fees and prestige that typically lift investment‑banking revenue expectations. Morgan Stanley seen as front-runner for SpaceX IPO, sources say
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support has picked up: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and others keep favorable ratings and recent coverage includes a higher price target, reinforcing buyside momentum. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Raises Morgan Stanley Price Target to $202.00
• Positive Sentiment: Ongoing analyst activity from large brokerages (including Morgan Stanley’s own research upgrades on major tech names) highlights the firm’s influential research footprint — a plus for institutional distribution and trading flows. Morgan Stanley Upgrades Accenture (ACN) to Overweight, Raises Target to $320
• Neutral Sentiment: MS is approaching its Q4 reporting window; previews expect single‑digit EPS growth — that lowers the bar but keeps upside tied to trading and underwriting beats. Morgan Stanley Earnings Preview: What to Expect
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader industry commentary (Zacks / sector pieces) flags investment banks as beneficiaries of better trading and underwriting markets — supportive context but not unique to MS. 3 Stocks to Buy From the Prospering Investment Banking Industry
• Negative Sentiment: Not all signals are uniformly bullish — there was a near‑term pullback/weakness noted in commentary yesterday, underscoring that momentum could reverse if trading revenue or deal news disappoints. Morgan Stanley (MS) Stock Slides as Market Rises: Facts to Know Before You Trade

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on MS. Dbs Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.77.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. The trade was a 14.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.