Morgan Stanley MD Promotions Buck Wall Street Trend to Go Big

Morgan Stanley promoted 173 employees to managing director, the firm’s top rank.

The new entrants to the club represent a 12% jump over last year, but still lower than in each of the two years before that. That marked a break from the trend for bigger boosts seen at rivals.

The biggest US banks have been bulking up the number of new entrants to their highest ranks, reflecting the strong performance for the companies in recent years as well as expectations for more robust business ahead. The largest Wall Street firms have all outperformed gains for broader stock gauges, with ...