Morgan StanleyMSTOP PICKFeb 14, 2017Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jun 05, 2026. Market Open.
He's going to pull the lens back, as he likes to look at things from a macro perspective. In 2020, we went from falling interest rates for 40 years to what is likely rising long-term interest rates for the next 25-30 years. That benefits banks in particular.
If you look at the XLF in the US, after going nowhere from 2008-2021, it finally made a new high. Beginning of a new long-term bull market that probably goes on 10-12 years. During that time, earnings go up and so do dividends. The multiple expands.
US banks have had a wonderful year. He's used JPM as a Top Pick many times, and he also owns MS. 95% of global banks are trading above a rising 200-day MA. Don't be afraid of a bull market. These are dividend growth stocks, and when there's inflation a rising stream of income is pretty attractive to offset the rising cost of living.
The capital markets banks are all performing really well. That tells you something about the rest of the market; if investors are focusing on these banks, then they must have a view that lots of deals will be done and that capital markets provide a good opportunity. This name is more investment management than trading, but still very attractive.
Since 1841, US equities have returned about 9% a year, versus bonds of about 05%. However, there are 2 extended periods; 1910 to 1945, and 1981 to 2016, where bonds and stocks gave roughly the same results, with less volatility in bonds. It’s no wonder that in both cases people got to like bonds a lot. In the late 1940s, when stocks started to outperform for the next 35 years, they went up 5 for 1. We have just come out of a period where bonds and stocks gave the same return. So arguably for the rest of our investing lives, we may see stocks outperform by a multiple in bonds. This one is a leader in institutional equities. 43% of their revenues come from wealth management. The wealth management business is the 2nd biggest in the US. This is a business that is firmly focused on domestic equity. The company has quietly transformed itself into a wealth management machine. Dividend yield of 1.74%. (Analysts’ price target is $48.35.)