Capital International Inc. CA Buys 57,404 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Capital International Inc. CA lifted its position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 27.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 267,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 57,404 shares during the quarter. Capital International Inc. CA’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $42,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MS. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. increased its position in Morgan Stanley by 65.2% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC raised its stake in 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 during the period. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of MS stock opened at $160.70 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $255.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $168.14. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $94.33 and a 1 year high of $192.68.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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 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 39.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Dbs Bank raised Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Barclays upped 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. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $207.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.93.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley announced cuts of roughly 2,500 jobs as part of a restructuring aimed at improving cost efficiency and operational flexibility — investors may view this as margin‑enhancing over time if execution and one‑time charges are controlled. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research remains active and visible: the firm reinstated Nvidia as a top AI chip pick (showing strong franchise in semiconductor coverage) and has been adjusting price targets for clients such as Grainger and Travelers — positive for recurring research/IB visibility but indirect for MS’s stock performance. Article Title Article Title Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s market commentary (saying the U.S. market should outperform and that the S&P 500 rolling correction may be nearing an end) reinforces its investment‑bank research positioning — helpful for business reputation but not an immediate catalyst for MS shares. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies downgraded Morgan Stanley from “strong‑buy” to “hold” — a direct sell‑side signal that can pressure the stock by reducing buy‑side conviction and prompting short‑term selling. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.