Morgan Stanley $MS Shares Bought by Farther Finance Advisors LLC

Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 24.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,230 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $3,375,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS opened at $181.65 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $168.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $288.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. Morgan Stanley has a 52-week low of $94.33 and a 52-week high of $182.00.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.73. The company had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.42 billion. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.40%. Morgan Stanley’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 31st. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks summary notes MS outperformed the market in the latest session and highlights factors supporting the rally — a quick reference that momentum and analyst attention are lifting the stock. Morgan Stanley (MS) Rises Higher Than Market: Key Facts
• Positive Sentiment: MS appears on a Zacks list of high-yield S&P names, reinforcing investor interest in the stock for income-oriented portfolios and supporting demand from dividend-focused funds. Top 5 High-Yield S&P 500 Stocks to Buy for Reliable Returns in 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research named NVDA, AVGO and ALAB among top chip picks for 2026 — a sign MS research is engaged in growth sectors that can drive trading and advisory revenues. That helps positioning and client flows into MS’s investment-banking and trading franchises. Morgan Stanley Picks NVDA, AVGO, and ALAB as Top Chip Stocks for 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund appointed a new compliance chief — a governance move that reduces operational/regulatory risk for the firm’s credit business and can reassure fund investors. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Names New Compliance Chief
• Neutral Sentiment: The Zacks Analyst Blog referenced Morgan Stanley among several firms in a roundup — useful for visibility but not a material company-specific development. The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Invesco, Johnson & Johnson, NiSource, Bunge Global and Morgan Stanley
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley analysts continue to publish sector calls (for example downgrading Enterprise Products) and adjust targets — this shows active coverage that influences trading flows but is company-research activity rather than a direct corporate event. Morgan Stanley Downgrades Enterprise Products (EPD) as Growth Story Fades
• Neutral Sentiment: MS economists’ commentary on U.K. fiscal constraints (coverage in Proactive) signals the firm’s macro views are in play for clients and policymakers — important for client advisory but not a direct stock event. Rachel Reeves’ hopes for an easier year meet a hard dose of reality. Here’s what’s in store in 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Nasdaq reported a rise in short interest across its securities — a broader market signal that can increase volatility and weigh on financial stocks during risk-off moves; this is a market-level headwind for banks that are sensitive to trading volumes and market sentiment. Nasdaq Reports Increase in Short Interest Across Global Market Securities as of December 15, 2025

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total transaction of $16,434,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 574,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $94,493,199.24. This trade represents a 14.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.77.

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.