Morgan Stanley (MS) stock was up on Wednesday alongside the release of the financial company’s Q1 2026 earnings report. The company reported diluted earnings per share of $3.43, which was better than Wall Street’s estimate of $3.02. It was also a 31.9% improvement from the $2.60 reported in Q1 2025.
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Morgan Stanley reported revenue of $20.58 billion in its most recent earnings report. This was a beat compared to analysts’ revenue estimate of $19.74 billion. Traders will also note that the company’s revenue grew 16% year-over-year from $17.74 billion. The company’s revenue growth was fueled by a 36% increase in investment banking revenue, a 25% gain in equity revenue, and a 29% boost in fixed income revenue.
Morgan Stanley stock was up 2% in pre-market trading on Wednesday, following a 1.21% rally yesterday. The stock has increased 3.84% year-to-date and 69.98% over the past 12 months.
Morgan Stanley Guidance
Morgan Stanley didn’t provide a formal guidance update in its latest earnings report. However, CEO Ted Pick did comment on the state of the company. He said, “Strong execution resulted in net revenues of $20.6 billion, EPS of $3.43 and a ROTCE of 27.1%. Institutional Securities benefited from robust client engagement and strength globally. Wealth Management demonstrated continued momentum, with net new assets of $118 billion and fee-based asset flows of $54 billion. These results affirm the capabilities of our Integrated Firm as we deliver a higher plane of operating performance.”
Investors will likely learn more about the company’s expectations for 2026 in its Q1 conference call. This is set for 9:30 a.m. ET today.
Is Morgan Stanley Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for Morgan Stanley is Moderate Buy, based on five Buy and seven Hold ratings over the past three months. With that comes an average MS stock price target of $194.90, representing a potential 6.31% upside for the shares. These ratings and price targets will likely change as analysts update their coverage after today’s earnings report.
