Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Given New $171.00 Price Target at Rothschild & Co Redburn

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its price objective lowered by Rothschild & Co Redburn from $175.00 to $171.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Barclays raised their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $207.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $185.73.

Morgan Stanley Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $166.30 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $264.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $169.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.20. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $94.33 and a 1 year high of $192.68.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 14.09%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 39.18%.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.00, for a total value of $3,966,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 171,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,464,920. The trade was a 11.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total transaction of $5,569,194.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 280,481 shares in the company, valued at $51,501,921.22. This trade represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MS. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,736,648,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,917,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,648,354,000 after buying an additional 3,364,080 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 142.4% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,122,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $511,723,000 after buying an additional 1,833,844 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Morgan Stanley by 319.7% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,092,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $294,727,000 after buying an additional 1,593,774 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,718,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,253,554,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361,940 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: E*Trade (Morgan Stanley’s retail arm) is in talks to lead SpaceX’s U.S. retail IPO allocation — if confirmed this would strengthen MS’s retail distribution and fee pipeline and could boost E*Trade account activity and underwriting revenue. Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade in talks to lead SpaceX IPO share sale to small investors in US: Sources
• Positive Sentiment: Wolfe Research cut its MS price target (221→197) but maintained an “Outperform” rating — signals continued buy-side conviction from a major shop despite a model reset, supporting upside expectations. Wolfe Research adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley to $197 from $221; maintains Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s strategic push into alternatives (EquityZen deal, private credit growth) is highlighted as an AUM-growth catalyst — a longer-term revenue diversification story that could lift fee income and valuation multiple. Morgan Stanley’s Push Into Alternatives: Is It an AUM Growth Catalyst?
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile endorsement: coverage noting billionaire Paul Tudor Jones is bullish on Morgan Stanley reinforces demand-side narrative among some institutional investors. Morgan Stanley (MS): Billionaire Paul Tudor Jones Is Bullish on This Banking Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley strategists recommended a more defensive positioning for clients (higher cash/Treasury allocations) — this is a macro view that can temper sector rotation and volatility but is not a direct company-specific catalyst. It’s time to get defensive, say Morgan Stanley strategists. Hold more cash and make these moves.
• Negative Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn trimmed their PT on MS to $171 and kept a neutral rating — a downward revision that can weigh on near-term sentiment. Rothschild & Co Redburn adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley to $171 from $175; maintains Neutral
• Negative Sentiment: HSBC lowered its MS price target to $153 and kept a Hold rating — the cut increases the number of outside analysts signaling limited near-term upside and may pressure headline sentiment. HSBC adjusts price target on Morgan Stanley to $153 from $175; maintains Hold

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.