Morgan Stanley's profit plummeted in the first three months of 2016 amid global concerns about stagnating economies, falling oil prices and other economic uncertainties.
The investment banking firm on Monday reported net income of $1.1 billion or 55 cents per share vs. a $2.4 billion profit, or $1.18 per share for that same quarter last year. Revenue of $7.79 billion was down from $9.9 billion in the first quarter of 2015.
But while the results were down sharply from a year earlier, they came in above Wall Street's lowered expectations. Analysts had only expected Morgan to earn 46 cents a share, according to Zacks Investment Research. Revenue also slightly topped forecasts for $7.87 billion.
The bank's stock (MS) rallied 1.6% Monday morning to $26.11 following the news.
For the quarter, Morgan said it led in global completed initial public offering activity as well as mergers and acquisitions. But difficult market conditions weighed investor activity.
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"The first quarter was characterized by challenging market conditions and muted client activity,'' James Gorman, Morgan Stanley's chairman and CEO said in a statement. "While we see some signs of market recovery, global uncertainties continue to weigh on investor activity.''
Last week, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup also reported sharply lower results that still managed to beat lowered expectations.
