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With a market cap of $205.4 billion, Morgan Stanley (MS) is a leading global financial services holding company serving corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals across the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through three core business units: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management.
Companies valued at $200 billion or more are generally considered “mega-cap” stocks, and Morgan Stanley fits this criterion perfectly. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services including capital raising, M&A advisory, equity and fixed income trading, investment advisory, wealth and financial planning, lending, and global asset management across traditional and alternative investments.
However, shares of the New York-based company have declined 9.9% from its 52-week high of $142.03. Over the past three months, its shares have decreased 3.8%, slightly steeper than the broader Dow Jones Industrials Average's ($DOWI) 3.6% drop during the same period.
Longer term, MS stock is up 1.8% on a YTD basis, slightly exceeding DOWI's marginal dip. In addition, shares of the financial services giant have returned 29.8% over the past 52 weeks, surpassing DOWI’s 8.8% rise over the same time frame.
Since May, the stock has risen above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
Shares of Morgan Stanley rose 1.4% on Apr. 11 after the company reported strong Q1 2025 results, with EPS of $2.60 and revenue of $17.7 billion, exceeding forecasts. The Institutional Securities unit delivered record net revenue of $9 billion, while Wealth and Investment Management segments saw solid growth of 6% and 16%, respectively. Investors responded positively to the broad-based strength across business segments and a robust 23% ROTCE, despite concerns over rising expenses and a lack of forward guidance.
Nevertheless, MS has underperformed its rival, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS), which has recorded a 4.9% YTD rise and a 30.6% increase over the past 52 weeks.
Despite Morgan Stanley’s outperformance relative to the Dow Jones over the past year, analysts remain cautiously optimistic about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from 24 analysts in coverage, and as of writing, MS is trading below the mean price target of $129.21.
On the date of publication, Sohini Mondal did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
