Bank of America's quarterly profit fell 17% to $6.93 billion, or 91 cents a share, after the bank recorded a $1.2 billion charge covering the federal anti-money-laundering penalties it agreed to pay on Tuesday, CNBC reported Wednesday. Without that charge, the bank would have earned $1.08 a share, slightly below the $1.10 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG estimates cited by CNBC.

A year earlier, the second-largest U.S. bank earned $8.3 billion, or $1.04 a share. Its shares fell about 4% in premarket trading Wednesday, Reuters reported.

Companywide revenue rose 3.2% to $30.12 billion, but that was about $570 million short of forecasts, largely because of weaker results from its Wall Street trading operations, CNBC reported. Bond trading revenue fell 17% to $2.55 billion, while stock trading revenue rose 10% to $2.51 billion, and both numbers fell short of analyst estimates, CNBC said.

Investment banking fees fell 11% to $1.8 billion after the bank warned last month that those fees would drop by at least 10%, Reuters reported. Net interest income, which is the money a bank makes on loans minus what it pays out on deposits, rose 7.9% to $16.6 billion, CNBC reported.

Morgan Stanley, by contrast, delivered better-than-expected results, earning $3.03 a share, above the $2.91 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG estimates cited by CNBC, as its revenue rose 12% to $20.34 billion. Net income applicable to Morgan Stanley rose 6.5% to $4.91 billion, CNBC reported. Total net income, including noncontrolling interests, was $4.97 billion, up 7%, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Its equities trading business, long a marquee franchise for the firm, posted a 41% jump in revenue to $5.8 billion, about $909 million more than analysts expected, with particular strength in Asia, CNBC reported. Bond trading revenue fell 7% to $2.01 billion, and investment banking revenue rose 2% to $2.16 billion, with both coming in below forecasts, CNBC said.

The two reports close out the big U.S. banks' earnings, after JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and Wells Fargo posted mixed results on Tuesday, CNBC reported.

What we know: Bank of America's profit declined because of a $1.2 billion regulatory penalty and disappointing trading revenue, while Morgan Stanley exceeded expectations on its equities business.
What we don't: What executives at either bank will forecast for the final quarter of the year during their conference calls with analysts later Wednesday.