Morgan Stanley Surprised Investors With Stock Buyback, Strong Earnings

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)’s second-quarter net income rose 66%, beating analyst estimates, as the investment bank bounced back from a slump in trading revenue a year earlier. Revenues rose 22% to $8.5bn in the three months to July. Adjusted earnings per share, which strip out the effect of an acquisition and an accounting quirk, were 45 cents a share – just above the 43 cents expected by analysts. The bank also surprised investors by announcing it had received the go-ahead from regulators to buy back $500m worth of its shares. The news sent Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) stock sharply higher in pre-market trading…