Q4 EPS Estimates for Morgan Stanley Lifted by Zacks Research

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q4 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Morgan Stanley in a report issued on Tuesday, November 19th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the financial services provider will post earnings of $1.46 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $1.45. The consensus estimate for Morgan Stanley’s current full-year earnings is $7.32 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Morgan Stanley’s Q2 2026 earnings at $1.99 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $1.89 EPS.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.31. Morgan Stanley had a net margin of 10.64% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.27 billion.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Morgan Stanley from $106.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. HSBC raised shares of Morgan Stanley from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.94.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

Shares of MS opened at $134.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $76.33 and a one year high of $135.67. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $116.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.17. The company has a market capitalization of $216.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.32%.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley news, Director Stephen J. Luczo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $7,150,200.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 138,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,488,718.71. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MS. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 58.0% in the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 4,303 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $405,000 after acquiring an additional 1,580 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Morgan Stanley by 143.6% during the 1st quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 8,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $830,000 after buying an additional 5,194 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 12.6% during the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $976,000 after buying an additional 1,158 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley by 523.2% during the first quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 2,914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Morgan Stanley by 3.0% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 5,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $537,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It operates through Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments.