Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 7,528 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 1.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 405,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,528 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $64,537,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 119,123,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,779,734,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354,142 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 24,045,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,387,005,000 after buying an additional 749,150 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the 2nd quarter worth $2,234,883,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 13,438,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,894,023,000 after buying an additional 374,711 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,980,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,546,659,000 after buying an additional 28,420 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In related news, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total value of $6,020,286.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 357,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,254,222.62. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric F. Grossman sold 21,555 shares of Morgan Stanley stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was 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 owned 171,005 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,464,920. This trade represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 129,191 shares of company stock worth $23,736,506. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley filed an application with the OCC to charter a new bank unit supporting crypto back‑office activity — a signal management is building regulated infrastructure (custody, settlement) that could open new fee pools if regulators approve and demand scales. Morgan Stanley’s OCC Application Is Wall Street Colonizing Crypto’s Back Office
• Positive Sentiment: Separate reporting says MS is exploring “full‑stack” digital‑asset services (bitcoin custody, trading, lending and yield) — moves that position the bank to monetize institutional crypto demand and diversify revenue beyond traditional trading/advisory. Morgan Stanley Explores Full-Stack Digital Asset Services, Including Bitcoin Lending
• Positive Sentiment: MS appears among major institutions now advising modest Bitcoin allocations (1–5%) for portfolios — that endorsement (and MS research coverage) supports ongoing client demand and validates the bank’s strategy to offer crypto products. Bank of America, Morgan Stanley Support Bitcoin Stakes
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley disclosed a roughly 4.25% voting stake in Siemens Energy — a portfolio/strategic holding that is newsworthy but not an immediate operating catalyst for MS core businesses. Morgan Stanley Discloses 4.25% Voting Stake in Siemens Energy
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s direct‑lending arm reported Q4 results and declared a dividend — a reminder MS has sizable alternative‑assets exposure (private credit) that supports fee income but also ties the franchise to credit‑mark volatility. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Posts Q4 Results, Declares Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Primary negative driver today is a sector‑wide risk‑off selloff hitting large banks; MS is moving with peers as investors rotate out of cyclical financials amid macro/A.I. recession‑narrative fears rather than fresh company news. Morgan Stanley slides as risk-off selling hits big banks again
• Negative Sentiment: High‑profile insider and executive selling (documented filings discussed in market commentary) is amplifying caution; heavy insider dispositions can weigh on sentiment even if legally executed. Morgan Stanley slides as risk-off selling hits big banks again

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 6.4%

NYSE:MS opened at $166.20 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $179.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $94.33 and a fifty-two week high of $192.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $263.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.20.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 16.78%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore downgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.93.

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.