Record quarter for Morgan Stanley which reported net profits of 1,9 billion dollars in the first quarter of 2017 (+70% compared to 1,1 billion a year ago) and equal to 1 dollar per share. The American group has published its accounts which show net revenues up 25% to 9,74 billion dollars driven above all by investment banking (from 990 million to 1,4 billion in revenues) and sales & trading (from 2,7 billion to 3,5 billion in revenues). The board has announced plans to distribute a quarterly dividend of $0,20 per share. During the quarter, the group made purchases of $750 million to acquire approximately 17 million of its shares.
“We had one of the strongest quarters in recent years. All of our businesses performed well under improved market conditions. We are confident in our business model and future opportunities, while acknowledging that the surrounding environment remains uncertain." Thus James P. Gorman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Morgan Stanley, commented on the data released by the group.
