The Morgan Stanley headquarters is seen in New York
Morgan Stanley, one of the world's top investment banks, reported a third-quarter loss as lower volumes hit trading revenue. REUTERS

Shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) are up in pre-market trading after the company reported a 60 percent increase in fourth quarter earnings, driven by strong investment banking results.

Morgan Stanley said it recorded net income of $600 million, or 41 cents a share, on revenue of $7.8 billion in the fourth quarter. Analysts had forecast earnings of 40 cents a share on $7.4 billion in revenue.

In addition, the investment bank said it handed out bonuses and fees of $16 billion to its employees for the year, up from $14 billion a year ago.