Conning Inc. Has $34.99 Million Holdings in Morgan Stanley $MS

Conning Inc. lessened its stake in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 17.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 220,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 47,399 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley comprises about 1.2% of Conning Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $34,988,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley by 1.1% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings 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 worth $3,387,005,000 after purchasing an additional 749,150 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $2,234,883,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.9% in the 2nd 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 position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 0.3% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley has filed for spot crypto ETFs (Bitcoin and Solana) and is moving into crypto services — a potential new AUM and fee revenue stream that investors view as strategic diversification and distribution capability. Get Ready for Crypto Exposure as Morgan Stanley Joins the ETF Race
• Positive Sentiment: Separate coverage reports that Morgan Stanley plans to launch a cryptocurrency wallet — another revenue/product initiative that could deepen client engagement and capture crypto flows. Morgan Stanley Plans to Launch Cryptocurrency Wallet
• Positive Sentiment: MS’s private-equity arm took a majority stake in engineering firm Olsson — shows continued deal activity from MSPE and potential near-term realized value and longer-term fee/carry upside. Morgan Stanley’s PE unit takes majority stake in engineering firm Olsson
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and market outlets are updating forecasts ahead of Morgan Stanley’s Q4 earnings release (scheduled this week). Expectations and revisions can increase short‑term volatility but also set the stage for upside if MS beats on trading/AUM. Top Wall Street Forecasters Revamp Morgan Stanley Expectations Ahead Of Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre-earnings previews highlight that trading and investment-banking results will be watched closely (those lines drive quarter-to-quarter swings in revenue). This is informational — may amplify moves after the print. Earnings Preview: Morgan Stanley to Report This Week
• Positive Sentiment: Public commentary (Jim Cramer) and analyst write-ups highlight strong recent asset‑gathering at Morgan Stanley — positive signal for recurring fee revenue and wealth management momentum. Jim Cramer Says “The Asset Gathering in Morgan Stanley Has Been Extraordinary”
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market and banking-sector weakness (other banks’ volatility and index declines) is weighing on financial names, increasing downside risk for MS into earnings even if company fundamentals are stable. SPY is down 1.0% today, on BAC stock price movement

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, CEO Edward Pick sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.34, for a total transaction of $16,434,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 574,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $94,493,199.24. The trade was a 14.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Morgan Stanley Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE:MS opened at $180.77 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $287.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.20. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $188.82. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $174.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.09. 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 (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 13.85% and a return on equity of 16.40%. The business had revenue of $17.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.88 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on MS shares. HSBC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $211.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Dbs Bank raised shares of Morgan Stanley to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.85.

About Morgan Stanley

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.