Groupama Asset Managment Buys 2,871 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Groupama Asset Managment raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 293,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,871 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $48,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Purpose Unlimited Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley in the second quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MS shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Zacks Research cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Dbs Bank increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.50.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s fiscal 2026 EPS forecast was reportedly increased by an analyst, reinforcing expectations for continued earnings strength following the company’s recent quarterly beat. FY2026 EPS Forecast for Morgan Stanley Boosted by Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley is reportedly among the firms discussing financing for a large Texas data-center and power project. Such mandates could benefit its investment-banking, advisory and financing businesses as demand for artificial-intelligence infrastructure expands. Morgan Stanley, others in talks to finance data center and power project in Texas
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley-backed MEMX is set to combine with options exchange BOX in a transaction that gives control of the merged entity to TMX Group. The deal could strengthen Morgan Stanley’s strategic exposure to market infrastructure, although the immediate financial impact is unclear. Jane Street-Backed Exchange Sells Control to Canada’s TMX Group
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s $1.15-per-share cash dividend went ex-dividend on July 31 and is scheduled for payment on August 14. The ex-dividend adjustment can create short-term volatility, but it does not change the company’s underlying earnings outlook. Morgan Stanley’s Dividend Analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity, with 40,133 calls traded versus typical daily volume of about 18,021, indicated increased speculative interest in MS shares, though options activity alone does not establish a fundamental catalyst.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

MS stock opened at $210.93 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $215.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $190.81. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $136.17 and a twelve month high of $232.25. The firm has a market cap of $332.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.23.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 15.65%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.34%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Company 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.