People walk past Morgan Stanley World Headquarters in Manhattan on March 20, 2025 in New York City.
Spencer Pratt | Getty Images
Morgan Stanley on Thursday reported fourth-quarter results that beat Wall Street expectations on strong revenue from wealth management.
Here’s how the company reported compared to the expectations of Wall Street analysts surveyed by LSEG:
Earnings per share: $2.68 vs. $2.44 expected Earnings: $17.89 billion vs. $17.77 billion expected
Net income for the fourth quarter was $4.4 billion, or $2.68 per share, up from $3.71 billion, or $2.22 per share, in the same period last year. Revenue increased to $17.89 billion from $16.22 billion in the same period last year.
Bank stocks fell slightly in premarket trading following the report.
The Wealth Management segment’s net revenue for the most recent quarter was $8.4 billion, up from $7.5 billion in the year-ago period. For the full year, the segment’s net revenue was a record $31.8 billion.
Total client assets in the Wealth and Investment Management business increased to $9.3 trillion, supported by more than $350 billion in net new assets.
“Morgan Stanley delivered outstanding results in 2025,” Ted Pick, the bank’s CEO and chairman, said in a statement. “Our results reflect multi-year investments that have contributed to the overall growth and momentum of the combined company.”
Investment banking was also a standout business for the company. The segment’s net revenue increased 47% to $2.41 billion from $1.64 billion in the prior year period due to higher advisory fees due to higher completed M&A activity across all regions.
Under its stock repurchase program, the company repurchased $1.5 billion of its own stock during the quarter and $4.6 billion for the year.
Morgan Stanley shares have risen 38% over the past 12 months, but are down nearly 3% this week after other major banks reported earnings.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results due to strong stock and bond trading revenue. Wells Fargo reported weaker-than-expected earnings, while Bank of America
And Citigroup beat consensus estimates.
