BUZZ-BofA, Morgan Stanley close out bumper quarter for US banking giants

Strong results from Morgan Stanley MS.N and Bank of America BAC.N wrap up a stellar quarter for Wall Street's 'big-six' banks

Morgan Stanley up 1.8% in morning trading after Q4 profit more than doubles on a wave of dealmaking and stock sales

BofA's profit beats expectations as its traders benefit from a flurry of activity; Shares of the second-largest U.S. lender were last flat

Wall Street CEOs voiced confidence on Wednesday that the incoming U.S. administration would be business-friendly and good for banks

JPMorgan Chase's JPM.N annual profit rose to a record, while Goldman Sachs GS.N earned its biggest quarterly profit in more than three years

Meanwhile, Wells Fargo WFC.N gave an upbeat forecast for interest income - a key driver of its profits - in 2025 and Citigroup C.N swung to profit versus a loss in the year-ago quarter

All six banks sailed past analyst views for Q4 profit

Market environment has already been favorable for banks, with buoyant equity markets and anticipation that President-elect Donald Trump will usher in a deregulatory and lower-tax agenda

Elsewhere on Wall Street, PNC Financial PNC.N, M&T Bank MTB.N and U.S. Bancorp USB.N also posted higher Q4 profits

S&P 500 Banks Index .SPXBK, which tracks large-cap lenders, last up 0.5% on Thursday; It had gained ~6.5% month-to-date through previous close

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru)

((Manya.Saini@thomsonreuters.com))