Boston Common Asset Management LLC Has $26.32 Million Stake in Morgan Stanley $MS

Boston Common Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) by 8.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 159,949 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 14,650 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley comprises about 1.7% of Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $26,323,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MS. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Morgan Stanley by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Powers Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Fielder Capital Group LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 4,216 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $748,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howard Financial Services LTD. raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 3,579 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $635,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MS. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley from $187.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup increased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, CICC Research lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $220.80.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MS opened at $215.27 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $188.77. Morgan Stanley has a fifty-two week low of $136.17 and a fifty-two week high of $232.25. The company has a market capitalization of $339.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.57. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The firm had revenue of $21.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley will post 12.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is a positive change from Morgan Stanley’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley’s payout ratio is 32.34%.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 24th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Key Headlines Impacting Morgan Stanley

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reported blockbuster Q2 2026 results, with record net revenues of about $21.3 billion and earnings that beat expectations, reinforcing confidence in the company’s core businesses. Morgan Stanley (MS) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenues and Strategic Growth …
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share, a 15% increase from the prior quarter, which signals confidence in earnings power and capital return capacity.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the earnings release, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising its price target to $250 and Erste Group lifting FY2027 EPS estimates, suggesting more upside may remain. Morgan Stanley had its price target raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $225.00 to $250.00
• Neutral Sentiment: New reports also pointed to Morgan Stanley’s E*TRADE crypto rollout and AI-related market activity, which could help broaden its platform appeal over time but are not likely the main short-term drivers of the stock move.
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles noted a downgrade-style view from Seeking Alpha and a JPMorgan target below the current share price, which may temper enthusiasm at the margin even after the strong earnings beat. Morgan Stanley Maintains Hold on Comstock Resources, Keeps Price Target Unchanged at $16 Amid Cash Outspend and Funding Concerns

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.