Morgan Stanley (MS) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 net revenue was $20.3B, up 12% YoY; diluted EPS was $3.03, net income applicable to common shareholders was $4.9B and ROTCE was 22.6%.

• Wealth and Investment Management client assets reached a record $10.5T, up nearly $400B QoQ; ROTCE remained above 20% for a fifth consecutive quarter.

Financial highlights

• Pre-tax income was $6.5B, up 7% YoY; net income applicable to Morgan Stanley was $4.9B, up 6%, and diluted EPS rose 8% to $3.03.

• Total expenses were $13.7B, up 12% YoY; compensation expense rose 7% to $8.0B and non-compensation expense rose 20% to $5.7B.

• Investment Banking revenue was $2.2B, up 2% YoY, including $887M Advisory, $525M Equity underwriting and $747M Fixed Income underwriting.

• Nine-month net revenues were $62.3B, up 18% YoY; net income applicable to Morgan Stanley was $16.1B, up 29%.

• Provision for credit losses was $148M versus $0 a year ago; $141M was in Institutional Securities, including $105M of charge-offs largely provisioned in prior quarters.

Outlook and guidance

• Wealth NII is expected to increase modestly in Q4, subject to rates and client behavior, and expand next year, largely on loan growth.

• Q4 tax rate is expected to be slightly above Q3’s 23.3%; full-year tax guidance remains unchanged.

• Wealth pre-tax margin is expected to expand over time with scale; strategy prioritizes long-term investment over quarter-to-quarter margin management.

• Investment Banking pipelines remain robust and diversified; outlook for activity is favorable, subject to market conditions and client behavior.