Morgan Stanley

What does Morgan Stanley own?
Morgan Stanley owns a portfolio of financial services businesses including investment banking (M&A advisory, underwriting, trading), wealth management (brokerage, financial planning), and investment management (asset management). The company's major brands include Morgan Stanley (primary institutional and wealth management), E*TRADE (digital retail brokerage), and Eaton Vance (investment management). Morgan Stanley serves approximately 7.9 trillion in total client assets across its wealth management and investment management segments.

Is Morgan Stanley publicly traded?
Yes, Morgan Stanley Corporation is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol MS. The company has a broad institutional and retail shareholder base with no single controlling shareholder. Major institutional shareholders include Vanguard Group, BlackRock, and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.

Who founded Morgan Stanley?
Morgan Stanley was founded on September 16, 1935, by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley in New York City. The firm was established following the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which required commercial banks to separate their investment banking operations. Henry S. Morgan was the grandson of J.P. Morgan, and the new firm continued the securities business that had been conducted within J.P. Morgan & Co.

Where is Morgan Stanley headquartered?
Morgan Stanley is headquartered in New York City, New York, USA, at 1585 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan. The company maintains major offices in London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and other global financial centers to serve its international client base.

How many employees does Morgan Stanley have?
Morgan Stanley employs approximately 80,000 people worldwide. The company's workforce is distributed across its three business segments: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management, with major operations in New York, London, and other global financial centers.

Who owns Morgan Stanley?
Morgan Stanley Corporation is publicly traded on the NYSE with a broad institutional and retail shareholder base. No single shareholder holds a controlling stake. Major institutional shareholders include Vanguard Group, BlackRock, and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. Ted Pick serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

What is Morgan Stanley's revenue?
Morgan Stanley reported record net revenues of approximately $61.8 billion for fiscal year 2024, a 14% increase from FY2023. This represented one of the strongest years in the firm's history, with strong performance across all three business segments: Institutional Securities ($26.3 billion), Wealth Management ($28.4 billion), and Investment Management ($6.6 billion).

Is Morgan Stanley different from Goldman Sachs?
Yes, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are both leading investment banks but have different business models. Morgan Stanley has a larger wealth management business with approximately $7.9 trillion in total client assets, providing more stable, fee-based revenue compared to Goldman Sachs' more trading-intensive business mix. This difference in business composition has historically resulted in Morgan Stanley trading at higher valuation multiples relative to earnings.

Morgan Stanley was founded on September 16, 1935, by Henry S. Morgan and Harold Stanley. The firm was established in the wake of the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which required commercial banks to separate their investment banking operations. Henry S. Morgan was the grandson of J.P. Morgan, and the new firm was created to continue the securities underwriting and advisory business that had been conducted within J.P. Morgan & Co.

In its early years, Morgan Stanley focused exclusively on securities underwriting for major corporations, establishing a reputation for handling the largest and most prestigious transactions. The firm underwrote major bond and equity offerings for corporations including General Motors, U.S. Steel, and AT&T, building relationships with the largest American companies.

Morgan Stanley remained a private partnership for decades, maintaining an exclusive focus on institutional clients and large corporations. The firm went public in 1986, becoming a publicly traded corporation and providing capital for expansion.

In 1997, Morgan Stanley merged with Dean Witter, Discover & Co. in a transaction valued at approximately $10 billion. Dean Witter was a major retail brokerage firm with millions of individual investor clients, and the merger gave Morgan Stanley a significant retail distribution network alongside its institutional business. The merged company was initially named Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co., later reverting to Morgan Stanley in 2001.

The 2008 financial crisis severely tested Morgan Stanley. The firm faced significant losses from mortgage-related securities and experienced a crisis of confidence in September 2008 when its stock fell sharply amid concerns about its stability. Morgan Stanley received $10 billion in TARP funds from the U.S. government and also received a $9 billion investment from Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), Japan's largest bank, which stabilized the firm. Morgan Stanley converted to a bank holding company in September 2008.

James Gorman became CEO in January 2010, succeeding John Mack. Gorman's tenure was defined by a strategic pivot toward wealth management and investment management as more stable revenue sources. A key early move was the acquisition of Smith Barney from Citigroup in stages between 2009 and 2012, which gave Morgan Stanley one of the largest wealth management businesses in the United States.

Gorman continued the wealth management expansion with the acquisition of E*TRADE Financial Corporation in 2020 for approximately $13 billion, adding approximately 5.2 million retail brokerage accounts and a digital trading platform. In 2021, Morgan Stanley acquired Eaton Vance, an investment management firm, for approximately $7 billion, adding approximately $500 billion in assets under management.

Ted Pick became CEO in January 2024, succeeding Gorman who became Executive Chairman. Pick, who had previously served as Co-President and head of the Institutional Securities division, led the firm to record revenues in his first year.

Morgan Stanley has established comprehensive sustainability and ESG initiatives focused on sustainable finance, environmental responsibility, and social impact. The company has committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2040 and has integrated ESG considerations across its business operations and investment strategies.

The firm's sustainable finance initiatives include leadership in green bond underwriting, ESG investment research, and sustainable investing solutions for clients. Morgan Stanley has been a major underwriter of green bonds and sustainability-linked loans, helping channel capital toward environmental and social projects.

Morgan Stanley Institute for Sustainable Investing conducts research on ESG topics and provides thought leadership on sustainable investing trends. The institute publishes regular reports on climate risk, sustainable development, and the financial implications of ESG factors.

Environmental commitments include reducing the company's operational carbon footprint, increasing renewable energy usage in facilities, and implementing sustainable procurement practices. Morgan Stanley has set science-based targets for emissions reduction and reports annually on its environmental performance.

Social impact initiatives focus on community development, financial inclusion, and economic opportunity programs. The Morgan Stanley Foundation supports education, workforce development, and community revitalization programs in underserved communities.

The company maintains strong ethical standards and compliance programs, with robust anti-money laundering, know-your-customer, and conflict of interest prevention systems across all business segments.

Morgan Stanley has received recognition for financial performance, workplace practices, and ESG leadership from industry organizations and publications.

• Fortune Most Admired Companies (2025): Morgan Stanley was included in Fortune's World's Most Admired Companies ranking in the securities industry, reflecting peer and analyst respect for the company's operational capabilities and market leadership.
• Forbes World's Best Employers (2025): The company received recognition for employee satisfaction and workplace practices across its global workforce of approximately 80,000 people.
• ESG and Sustainability Awards: Morgan Stanley has received multiple awards for its sustainable finance leadership and ESG integration, including recognition for green bond underwriting and sustainable investing research.
• Financial Industry Recognition: The firm regularly receives awards from industry publications for investment banking excellence, wealth management services, and investment management performance.

Morgan Stanley has faced regulatory scrutiny related to its role in the 2008 financial crisis, including investigations into its mortgage-backed securities business. The firm reached a $3.2 billion settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice in 2016 related to its mortgage-backed securities activities in the years leading up to the financial crisis.

The firm has also faced regulatory scrutiny related to block trading practices. In 2024, Morgan Stanley reached a settlement with the SEC and DOJ related to allegations that its equities trading desk had improperly shared information about pending block trades, paying approximately $249 million in penalties.