Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Morgan Stanley (MS) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

In the latest trading session, Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report) closed at $80.85, marking a -0.31% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 1.42% gain on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.1%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 3.69%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the investment bank had gained 9.26% over the past month. This has outpaced the Finance sector's gain of 3.95% and the S&P 500's loss of 2.26% in that time.

MS will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release, which is expected to be April 16, 2021. In that report, analysts expect MS to post earnings of $1.59 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 60.61%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $12.32 billion, up 29.84% from the year-ago period.

MS's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $5.74 per share and revenue of $48.02 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of -12.77% and -0.37%, respectively.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for MS should also be noted by investors. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 1.51% higher. MS is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Investors should also note MS's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 14.13. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 13.7.

We can also see that MS currently has a PEG ratio of 1.41. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. MS's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.41 as of yesterday's close.

The Financial - Investment Bank industry is part of the Finance sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 7, putting it in the top 3% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Morgan Stanley (MS) - free report >>

Published in