Morgan Stanley books $1.2 billion in legal costs
NEW YORK - Morgan Stanley (MS) says its earnings fell in the fourth quarter as it was hit by legal costs.
The New York investment bank earned
$433 million, or 20 cents a share, in the fourth quarter of 2013. That compared
to $982 million, or 49 cents a share, a year earlier.
Excluding litigation costs and a tax
benefit, the bank earned 50 cents a share, beating the 44 cents forecast by
Wall Street analysts. The results also exclude accounting adjustments related
to the value of the bank's debt.
The fourth quarter included legal
expenses of $1.2 billion related to mortgage-backed securities lawsuits.
Revenue rose 9 percent to $8.2 billion from $7.5 billion, beating analysts' forecasts of $8.02 billion.
Morgan Stanley's stock rose 85 cents,
or 2.7 percent, to $32.80 in pre-market trading.