St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC Takes $2.87 Million Position in Morgan Stanley $MS

St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 16,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,870,000. Morgan Stanley accounts for 1.8% of St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. grew its position 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 buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 91.9% during 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 during the period. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.62, for a total transaction of $5,569,194.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 280,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,501,921.22. This represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total transaction of $3,691,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 127,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,598,777.60. This trade represents a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506 over the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley formally advanced its spot Bitcoin ETF registration (ticker MSBT), disclosing $1M seed capital, planned NYSE Arca listing, custodial partners (Coinbase/BNY Mellon) and named authorized participants — a potential new product that could bring fee revenue, increase client asset flows and reinforce MS’s digital-asset positioning. Morgan Stanley advances MSBT Bitcoin ETF with amended SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: MS research is publishing macro downside scenarios (e.g., elevated European gas risk and earlier ECB hikes) and revised rate‑cut timing — these calls can drive market volatility and trading flows that affect MS’s trading & principal revenues but are not direct corporate fundamentals. Europe gas refill risks rise; MS flags €90 TTF scenario
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley limited redemptions in a private‑credit vehicle and publicly flagged rising default/liquidity risk in parts of private credit — a near‑term negative for asset‑management fee stability, client confidence and potential reputational risk if outflows/credit losses broaden. Investors may be re‑pricing wealth & asset‑management exposure. Morgan Stanley Tests Private Credit Liquidity As AI Risks Surface

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of MS stock opened at $161.47 on Friday. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $94.33 and a 1-year high of $192.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $173.36 and its 200 day moving average is $168.43. The company has a market cap of $256.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.81, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given 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 2.5%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 39.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MS. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.14.

Morgan Stanley 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.