Mirabaud & Cie SA Sells 26,477 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Mirabaud & Cie SA reduced its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 95.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 26,477 shares during the quarter. Mirabaud & Cie SA’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MS. Central Bank & Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 3,579 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $635,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 1.1% during the third quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,843 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $929,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 2.1% in the third quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 3,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $496,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 30,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 280,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,501,921.22. The trade was a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 in the last three months. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $166.30 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $264.06 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.19. Morgan Stanley has a 1 year low of $94.33 and a 1 year high of $192.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $169.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.20. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The company had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend payout ratio is 39.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, HSBC reduced their price target on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $153.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $185.73.

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.