Morgan Stanley (MS) stock climbed higher on Friday after the financial company released its Q1 2025 earnings report. That’s thanks to the company’s diluted earnings per share of $2.60, which was well above Wall Street’s estimate of $2.21. Its EPS for the quarter also increased 28.7% year-over-year from $2.02.
Revenue came in at $17.74 billion, another beat for Morgan Stanley compared to analysts’ estimate of $16.54 billion. The company’s revenue also grew 17.2% year-over-year from $15.14 billion. MS noted Institutional Securities revenue for Q1 was $9 billion, with record results from Equity and strong Investment Banking results on higher fixed income underwriting.
MS investors were pleased with the company’s Q1 2025 results. This boosted shares of Morgan Stanley stock 1.33% higher this morning. Even so, the company’s shares were still down 13.77% year-to-date. That 2025 drop came alongside a larger market downturn as President Donald Trump’s trade war and tariffs weighed on stocks.
Morgan Stanley CEO Comments
Morgan Stanley Chairman and CEO Ted Pick didn’t address the current economic climate in the company’s Q1 earnings report. Instead, the CEO focused on its strong quarterly performance. He highlighted an ROTCE of 23%, $4.1 billion in Equity revenue, client assets of $7.7 trillion, and $94 billion in net new assets.
According to Pick, “These results demonstrate the consistent execution of our clear strategy to drive durable growth across our global footprint.”
Is MS Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for Morgan Stanley stock is Moderate Buy, based on five Buy and 10 Hold ratings over the last three months. With that comes an average price target of $138.17, representing a potential 28.16% upside for MS stock. These ratings and price targets will likely change as analysts update their coverage after today’s earnings.
