(NY Post) James Gorman is behind the wheel of this bank — and that’s why he hasn’t already reached back and slapped you upside the head.
The hard-charging chief executive of Morgan Stanley compared Wall Street analysts to “kids in the back seat in the car” during a Thursday conference call, berating them for nitpicking questions after the banking behemoth reported boffo results.
“‘When are we going to get there? When are we going to get there?’” Gorman said sarcastically after analyst Christian Bolu of research firm Autonomous asked how Morgan Stanley expected to meet aggressive growth goals as the economy grows more challenging.
“We kind of got there,” Gorman added, pointing to the bank’s surprisingly strong results.
Morgan Stanley shares surged 6.7 percent after the bank announced its profits for 2019 were $10.9 billion, topping analyst expectations of $9.8 billion and setting a record for the 85-year-old investment bank.
The bank said it now expects to increase its total capital by 15 percent to 17 percent this year, up from last year’s 13 percent.
Questioned about the lofty goal later in the call by combative Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo, Gorman snapped again.
“Mike, we now go back a long way, and I’d have to say you’re a model of consistency,” quipped Gorman. “I’m not sure we’ve ever had a call when you haven’t asked for higher targets and I had to feel defensive.”
Earlier this week, Mayo had prompted a sigh from JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon after he asked the boss on a conference call how his bank would be affected by the uncertainty surrounding global trade.
“That’s a really hard question to answer, Mike,” groaned Dimon.
