Earnings Preview: Morgan Stanley's EPS, Revenue Expected to Rise - Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC)

Morgan Stanley MS releases its next round of earnings this Wednesday, October 19, 2011. Get prepared with Benzinga's ultimate preview for Morgan Stanley's third quarter earnings.

Earnings and Revenue:

Wall Street expects an EPS of 36 cents/share and revenues of $7.56 billion. Morgan Stanley's latest numbers will no doubt be compared with the company's year-ago quarter, when it reported a profit of 5 cents/share on revenues of $6.78 billion. We'll have to wait for Wednesday to see if Morgan Stanley falls in line with analyst expectations and reports an estimated increase in both EPS and revenue from the year-ago quarter.

Here's how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past:

Quarter	Q2	Q1	Q4	Q3
EPS Estimate	-$0.63	$0.34	$0.35	$0.19
EPS Actual	-$0.38	$0.46	$0.43	$0.05

Stock Performance:

At last check, shares of Morgan Stanley were trading at $15.14. Shares are down 44% year to date. For a full 12 months, the return has declined by 40%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are probably a little upset going into this earnings release.

Long-term shareholders are already wary of 12-month losses prior to the announcement

Average Stock Rating:

The average rating by analysts for Morgan Stanley is a Hold. The strength of this rating has declined slightly over the past three months.

Competitors:

Wondering how some of the other financials companies are doing? Here are a few of Morgan Stanley's peers in that sector.

Bank of America BAC: Hold with a -$0.90 recent quarter EPS
Citigroup C: Moderate Buy with a $1.09 recent quarter EPS
Deutsche Bank AG (USA DB: Hold with a $1.78 recent quarter EPS
General Electric Company GE: Moderate Buy with a $0.33 recent quarter EPS

Morgan Stanley is in the financial/investment brokers industry, which has experienced price/earnings growth of 0.8%.

Finally, a description of the company's main areas of operation: Morgan Stanley provides financial products and services to a group of clients and customers, including corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals.

Take Action:

Now that you're fully prepared, get ready to take quick action if the company reports any numbers significantly different from those listed above. Also, check back in with us after the announcement for a full recap and what-to-do-next guide.

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