Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Price Target Lowered to $190.00 at BMO Capital Markets

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) had its price objective trimmed by BMO Capital Markets from $215.00 to $190.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Morgan Stanley from $173.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Morgan Stanley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Evercore reduced their target price on Morgan Stanley from $215.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $188.87.

Morgan Stanley Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Morgan Stanley stock opened at $166.33 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The firm has a market cap of $264.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $168.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.47. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $94.33 and a fifty-two week high of $192.68.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.69 billion. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 14.09%.The company’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.18%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael A. Pizzi sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.55, for a total transaction of $3,691,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 357,342 shares in the company, valued at $65,254,222.62. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 129,191 shares of company stock valued at $23,736,506 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Cornerstone Planning LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at $3,618,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 429,669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $76,279,000 after buying an additional 64,401 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors raised its position in Morgan Stanley by 34.9% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 28,138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,995,000 after buying an additional 7,272 shares during the period. Finally, Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley during the fourth quarter valued at $125,000. 84.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies says Morgan Stanley should benefit from a trading surge and steady dealmaking, raising expectations for a strong Q1 — a near‑term earnings catalyst. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley seen riding trading boom as dealmaking holds firm, Jefferies says
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised its price target on MS (from $172 to $186), which supports a constructive view from a large Wall Street shop and may attract buyers. Goldman Sachs adjusts price target on Morgan Stanley to $186
• Positive Sentiment: Billionaire Ken Griffin maintains a sizable stake in Morgan Stanley — a notable institutional endorsement that can support sentiment. Is Morgan Stanley (MS) The Best Financial Stock to Buy According to Billionaire Ken Griffin?
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund set a Q1 2026 results call — investors in MS‑linked credit vehicles should monitor fund results for credit performance and fee generation. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Sets Q1 2026 Results Call
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley research says AI‑driven labor disruption remains limited so far — a thematic view that may temper near‑term risk narratives around financials but is not an immediate earnings driver. Morgan Stanley finds AI labor disruption remains limited in early stages
• Negative Sentiment: Evercore and BMO both cut Morgan Stanley’s price target (from $215 to $190), signaling reduced upside from some sell‑side desks and adding near‑term pressure on sentiment. Evercore adjusts price target on Morgan Stanley to $190 BMO Capital adjusts price target on Morgan Stanley to $190
• Negative Sentiment: Firm is launching a private‑credit vehicle while the sector faces liquidity stress — this could expand fee opportunities but also raises execution and liquidity risk that investors may discount. Morgan Stanley Plans Private Credit Fund Even as Investors Flee

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.