Rothschild & Co Redburn Lowers Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target to $171.00

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its target price dropped by analysts at Rothschild & Co Redburn from $175.00 to $171.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 2.98% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $207.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $202.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $170.00 to $195.00 in a report on Friday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $185.73.

Morgan Stanley Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $166.04 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. Morgan Stanley has a twelve month low of $94.33 and a twelve month high of $192.68. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $169.44 and its 200-day moving average is $169.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $263.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.26, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.19.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.40. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 14.09%.The company had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.69 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.22 EPS. Morgan Stanley’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley

In other Morgan Stanley news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total value of $3,691,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 127,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,598,777.60. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Daniel A. Simkowitz sold 32,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 in the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MS. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 103.1% during the third quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 12,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,019,000 after buying an additional 6,448 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 467,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,273,000 after buying an additional 9,056 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 97.4% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 22,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,644,000 after acquiring an additional 11,311 shares in the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 52.6% in the 3rd quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 113,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,043,000 after acquiring an additional 39,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, A4 Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley during the 3rd quarter valued at about $855,000. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley signaled a Bitcoin ETF is near launch after Amendment No. 4 filings — this could drive new AUM, product-fee income and intensify competition in institutional crypto products. Morgan Stanley Signals Bitcoin ETF Near Launch
• Positive Sentiment: E*TRADE (Morgan Stanley’s retail arm) is in talks to lead a SpaceX IPO retail allocation — winning large retail allocations could boost E*TRADE’s market share, transaction revenue and brand with everyday investors. E*TRADE in talks to lead SpaceX IPO retail sale
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/earnings previews note Morgan Stanley’s strong surprise history and place the firm in a good position to beat upcoming quarterly estimates — supportive for sentiment into earnings. Will Morgan Stanley (MS) Beat Estimates Again?
• Neutral Sentiment: E*TRADE published its monthly sector-rotation data — useful for positioning and client flows but unlikely to move MS shares materially by itself. E*TRADE Releases Monthly Sector Rotation Study
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation write-ups note recent soft short-term price action but strong multi-year returns — frames risk/reward for longer-term investors rather than an immediate catalyst. A Look At Morgan Stanley Valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple sell‑side firms trimmed price targets (Wolfe, Rothschild/Redburn, HSBC among others), producing downward pressure on sentiment — some cuts leave implied upside limited or turn neutral/hold, which can weigh on the stock near term. Wolfe Research adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley Rothschild & Co Redburn adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley HSBC adjusts PT on Morgan Stanley

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.