Morgan Stanley Beats Estimates With 42% Q1 Drop

A day after posting its biggest gain on Wall Street in more than a decade—shares rose 18% to $42.86—securities firm Morgan Stanley today reported a second straight quarterly loss, as first quarter earnings fell 42% to $1.55 billion, from $2.67 billion a year ago, reports Bloomberg. But Morgan joined Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers in beating analyst expectations, prompting a runup in early trading.

Analysts had projected Morgan to earn $1.01 per share, down from $2.51 a year earlier; earnings of $1.45 per share prompted CEO John Mack—who said the company's fourth quarter earnings were "embarrassing"—to declare himself  “satisfied with how Morgan Stanley navigated the ongoing market turbulence." Revenue was down 17% to $48.3 billion, and the bank said it took $2.3 billion in writedowns. (More Morgan Stanley stories.)