Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) shares climbed nearly 5% in early trading Wednesday after the bank reported first quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations, supported by stronger-than-anticipated trading revenue.
The New York-based lender posted earnings of $3.43 per share for the quarter, ahead of the $3 estimate.
Revenue came in at $20.58 billion, handily topping expectations of $19.72 billion.
Net income rose 29% from a year earlier to $5.57 billion, while total revenue increased 16%, reflecting broad-based growth across the firm’s trading, investment banking and wealth management divisions.
The bank said its trading operations generated nearly $1 billion more revenue than analysts had forecast, helping to drive the overall earnings beat. Institutional Securities, which houses trading and investment banking activities, reported record revenue of $10.7 billion, boosted by heightened client activity amid market volatility and stronger advisory performance.
Wealth Management also delivered record results, with revenue of $8.5 billion. The division added $118 billion in net new assets during the quarter, alongside $53.7 billion in fee-based asset flows, signaling continued client inflows and engagement.
Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick described the quarter as a record period for the firm, citing strong execution across business lines and “robust client engagement” globally.
“These results affirm the capabilities of our Integrated Firm as we deliver a higher plane of operating performance,” Pick said.