3 Things to Watch When Morgan Stanley Reports Third Quarter Earnings Monday

Morgan Stanley (MS) reports third quarter earnings before the opening bell on Monday, October 19th. Analysts expect earnings per share of $0.63 on sales of $8.55 billion. ‘The big thing for Morgan Stanley is stable recurring revenue coming from its wealth management business,’ said Ken Leon, an equity analyst with S&P Capital IQ, who maintains a STRONG BUY rating. Revenue from this division stood at $3.9 billion during second quarter, compared to $3.7 billion during the same quarter in 2014. Leon is also watching for how the bank’s trading department performed, which was a bright spot during second quarter, bringing in $2.3 billion, a roughly 28 percent increase from last year. The stronger trading sales helped the New York-based bank beat the Street’s top and bottom line forecasts. Leon is bullish on this front for third quarter. TheStreet’s Scott Gamm reports from New York.