Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick: Corporate health of large cap companies is excellent

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  January 21, 2026 at 13:31  |  8:34  |  CNBC
Speakers
Ted Pick — Head of Financial Products, Apollo

Summary

Morgan Stanley Chairman and CEO Ted Pick says the investment banking environment is the best in a long time, driven by large-cap M&A, cross-border activity, and a strong IPO pipeline. He describes excellent corporate and high-end consumer health, above-trend earnings growth, and a supportive Fed, with overall market lights green despite high asset prices and geopolitical noise. Pick also says AI is real and shifting from efficiency to effectiveness, but investors need to spread bets across the ecosystem, and he highlights Morgan Stanley's integrated wealth and investment banking model.

  • Ted Pick says investment banking conditions are the best in years.
  • Large-cap and cross-border M&A plus IPO volume are recovering.
  • Corporate health and high-end consumer health are excellent.
  • Earnings growth is running above the long-term average.
  • Fed easing and cooling inflation support the macro backdrop.
  • AI is moving from efficiency to effectiveness and requires spread betting.
  • Morgan Stanley's wealth, asset management, and E-Trade are performing well.
  • Regulatory normalization and fiscal policy are supportive.
Ideas
Ted Pick Head of Financial Products, Apollo 0:46
Investment banking cycle is strong.
M&A activity stalled by the pandemic and rising rates is now happening, especially large-cap and cross-border deals, and this also drives strong IPO volume. The investment banking space is as good as it has been in a long time because companies need to act and AI is real and forcing cost and strategic adjustments.
Investment banks HIGH
Ted Pick Head of Financial Products, Apollo 1:04
AI is real; spread bets.
AI is real and moving from an efficiency play to an effectiveness play, making firms more productive and allowing process cuts. Because it is hard to pick the winning companies, investors in the AI ecosystem have to spread bets across the two or three or four winners all the way up to the cloud, accepting some mistakes and resetting.
AI ecosystem MED
Ted Pick Head of Financial Products, Apollo 1:23
Morgan Stanley's business setup is excellent.
The environment for Morgan Stanley is excellent: investment banking is in its best setup in a long time as large-cap M&A, cross-border activity, and IPO volume return; wealth management assets have accumulated and E-Trade is doing great; and the integrated firm model with long-tenured management is a competitive advantage. Regulatory normalization and positive fiscal policy also support the company.
MS HIGH
Ted Pick Head of Financial Products, Apollo 2:55
US large-cap setup is green.
Corporate health of large-cap companies and high-end consumer health are excellent; earnings growth is tracking 15-17% versus a 7-8% long-term average; fiscal health, consumer, and corporate conditions are strong; the Fed has eased three times and inflation is coming in. Despite high asset prices and geopolitical noise, the overall setup is green.
SPY HIGH
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This CNBC video, published January 21, 2026, features Ted Pick discussing Investment banks, AI ecosystem, MS, SPY. 4 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Ted Pick  · Tickers: Investment banks, AI ecosystem, MS, SPY