M&G PLC Invests $2.01 Million in Morgan Stanley $MS

M&G PLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 12,635 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,009,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 91.9% in the third quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $32,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded Morgan Stanley to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), signalling near‑term optimism from a well‑known independent screener and likely boosting buy‑side interest. Morgan Stanley (MS) Upgraded to Strong Buy: Here’s Why
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research flagged a roughly $45B “hidden” cybersecurity opportunity — a high‑profile thematic call that showcases the firm’s research monetization and helps position MS as a go‑to advisor on secular tech spending trends. Morgan Stanley flags $45B hidden cybersecurity opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: MarketWatch highlighted Morgan Stanley strategy views (the “HALO” trade on hard assets), increasing the firm’s public profile and supporting investor perception of its macro/research franchise. That visibility can lift trading flows and fee outlooks. Why the ‘HALO’ trade boosting hard assets is no fluke, according to Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: MS continues to be active in analyst coverage (e.g., adjusting price targets and opinions on names like Twilio and Alibaba). That keeps the firm in headlines and generates transaction/commission activity, but those headlines are stock‑specific rather than direct drivers of MS fundamentals. Morgan Stanley Reduces PT on Twilio Inc. (TWLO) Stock Morgan Stanley and Jefferies Stay Positive on Alibaba (BABA)
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors also reference Morgan Stanley’s January results (beat on EPS and revenue growth) as a baseline for current sentiment — a supportive but already‑priced factor. (See company filings/earnings commentary for details.)
• Negative Sentiment: Critical coverage on parts of MS’s business (e.g., commentary urging patience on direct‑lending initiatives) could dampen enthusiasm for certain fee streams or credit exposures and introduce near‑term headline risk. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending – Be Patient

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on MS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $157.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Evercore cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $207.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Friday, January 16th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Dbs Bank raised Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total value of $5,569,194.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 280,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,501,921.22. This trade represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.08, for a total transaction of $1,547,680.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 119,128 shares in the company, valued at $21,690,826.24. The trade was a 6.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

NYSE:MS opened at $171.50 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $94.33 and a 52 week high of $192.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $180.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.70. The firm has a market cap of $272.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.20.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.22 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

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.