Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 1,358,732 Shares of Morgan Stanley $MS

Federated Hermes Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 69.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 611,838 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,358,732 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $97,258,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley by 645.8% in the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC grew its position in Morgan Stanley by 91.9% in the 3rd quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the second quarter worth $35,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $157.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $183.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Morgan Stanley from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.93.

Morgan Stanley Stock Down 0.2%

MS stock opened at $182.35 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $289.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $178.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $162.02. Morgan Stanley has a 1-year low of $94.33 and a 1-year high of $192.68.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.92% and a net margin of 14.09%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 EPS. Analysts expect that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

More Morgan Stanley News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Closed acquisition of EquityZen expands Morgan Stanley’s private‑shares distribution and technology footprint, boosting its ability to monetize pre‑IPO/private markets through wealth channels. Morgan Stanley Closes Acquisition of EquityZen
• Positive Sentiment: Firm appointed Amy Oldenburg as head of digital asset strategy — a concrete leadership step after recent crypto ETF filings and wallet plans, signaling push into fee‑rich digital‑asset services. Morgan Stanley appoints new head of digital asset strategy
• Positive Sentiment: Research visibility: Morgan Stanley’s research is influencing markets (notably its space‑sector work) and the firm’s multi‑engine model drew positive mention from other banks — supports franchise value and fee‑based flows. Space Stock Boom: Why Retail and Wall Street Are Aligning
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro research note: Morgan Stanley’s economic views (on spending shifts as rates change) are market‑relevant but not an immediate stock catalyst; they mainly inform sector allocation. Morgan Stanley Expects Interest Rate Trends to Shift Spending Away from Services Toward Goods
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst franchise activity (MS analysts publishing targets/coverage on many names) underscores the firm’s research reach but is indirect for MS’s near‑term stock movement. Morgan Stanley’s (MS) Multi-Engine Model Impresses RBC
• Negative Sentiment: Minor portfolio/substantial‑holder filings (e.g., Morgan Stanley ceasing to be a substantial shareholder in an external resource name) and routine insider/position moves can create short‑term headline noise. Morgan Stanley Ceases to Be Substantial Shareholder in West African Resources

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total value of $3,691,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 127,872 shares in the company, valued at $23,598,777.60. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles A. Smith sold 8,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.08, for a total transaction of $1,547,680.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 119,128 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,690,826.24. The trade was a 6.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 196,223 shares of company stock valued at $34,150,220. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.