Morgan Stanley reports solid Q3 earnings beat

14th Oct 2026 12:54

(Sharecast News) - Morgan Stanley posted a solid third‑quarter beat on Wednesday, driven by a standout performance in its equities trading unit.

The bank reported earnings of $3.03 per share, ahead of the $2.91 expected, with revenues rising 12% to $20.34bn, above the $19.95bn consensus, and net profit climbing 6.5% to $4.91bn.

Equities trading was the highlight, with revenues surging 41% to $5.8bn - roughly $900m above forecasts - as the division saw broad strength across products and regions, with Asia singled out as a key contributor.

Fixed income trading, on the other hand, fell 7% to $2.01bn, coming in about $260m below expectations amid softer credit and commodities activity, and investment banking revenues edged 2% higher to $2.16bn, though this was still around $110m shy of estimates.

Advisory fees improved on a pickup in completed M&A deals, but equity underwriting declined on lower IPO volumes, and fixed‑income underwriting also weakened.

As of 1420 BST, Morgan Stanley shares were down 2.65% in pre-market action at $186.64 per share.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com