Morgan Stanley tops estimates as equities trading revenue exceeds expectations by $909 million
Equity trading revenue rose nearly 41% as market volatility lifted client activity, while investment banking revenue also increased 2%, the bank said.
- Morgan Stanley beat third-quarter profit estimates, posting $4.91 billion in profit, or $3.03 per share, exceeding Wall Street's $2.91 per share expectation amid volatile markets.
- Market volatility from the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decisions and the US-Iran war forced investors to realign portfolios, driving up trading volumes at the bank's desks.
- Equities trading revenue surged nearly 41% to $5.8 billion, while fixed income revenue dropped 7.3% to $2.01 billion. "The company's equities trading activity has done a lot of the heavy lifting," said Daniel Coatsworth, head of markets at Bell.
- Investment banking revenue rose 2% to $2.16 billion, bolstered by major advisory roles including Uber's $14.8 billion acquisition of Delivery Hero and Consolidated Precision Products' deal.
- Analysts remain focused on the outlook for mergers and IPOs, with Morgan Stanley securing underwriting roles in expected IPOs for Anthropic and OpenAI as Shares gained about 5.1% in 2026.
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Morgan Stanley beats quarterly profit estimates
Morgan Stanley has beaten estimates for third-quarter profit, helped by higher income from investment banking and strong equity trading as markets remained volatile due to the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision and the US-Iran war.
Morgan Stanley reported net profit of US$4.97 billion in the third quarter of 2026, or US$3.03 per share, an increase of 7% over the previous year. Revenue grew 12% in the annual comparison, reaching US$20.34 billion. Subject matter exclusive to subscribers. To have full access, access the link of the subject and register.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.10 EPS
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.10. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 15.65%. The company had revenue of $20.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.93 billion.
Morgan Stanley reported third-quarter earnings of $3.03 on net income of $20.3 billion, up from a year earlier. The strong performance was driven by strong earnings from its equity trading business and record-breaking wealth management business. The bank's shares rose more than half a percent in the minutes after the report was released.
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