Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors Has $3.32 Million Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors raised its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 29.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,625 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley accounts for approximately 2.3% of Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,321,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Crown Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 3.2% during the second quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 55.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 35.7% during the 2nd quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 8,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Key Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s latest earnings showed strong operating momentum: quarterly EPS of $3.46 exceeded estimates of $2.89, revenue reached $21.35 billion versus expectations of $19.67 billion, and revenue increased 27.1% year over year. The results support the longer-term bullish case for the stock.
• Positive Sentiment: The firm continues to expand client engagement and trading activity through E*TRADE. Its monthly sector-rotation study provides data on client buying and selling across U.S.-traded stocks, reinforcing Morgan Stanley’s wealth-management and brokerage presence. E*TRADE Releases Monthly Sector Rotation Study
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley argued that investors may be focusing on U.S. debt concerns while overlooking broader economic and market risks. The commentary highlights the firm’s macroeconomic expertise but does not provide a direct earnings catalyst. Morgan Stanley Says U.S. Debt Fears Miss Bigger Story
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley’s analyst teams remain active, including bullish calls on Robinhood, Broadcom and other growth companies. These calls may support advisory and research visibility, but they are unlikely to materially affect MS stock in the near term.
• Negative Sentiment: The immediate pressure is macroeconomic: higher long-term yields can increase market volatility, tighten financial conditions and weigh on investor sentiment toward banks and wealth managers. The rate spike also temporarily undermined Morgan Stanley’s technical breakout setup. Morgan Stanley Stock and Treasury Yield Rise

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MS shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Morgan Stanley from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Daiwa Securities Group upped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Morgan Stanley from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.75.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE MS opened at $211.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. Morgan Stanley has a 52 week low of $145.65 and a 52 week high of $232.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $332.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $215.85 and its 200 day moving average is $195.90.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 15.65%.The business had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. Morgan Stanley’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were given a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. This is a boost from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.19%.

Morgan Stanley declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is 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.