ACT
Enact Holdings, Inc.
ACT has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has the edge over ACT overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
ACT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
ACT's profitability is currently strong, and its revenue is stable. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like ACT.
MS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
MS's revenue and profitability are currently healthy. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like MS.
ACT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 6x | $28.70 | -37% |
| Fair | 7.6x | $36.40 | -21% |
| Expensive | 9.1x | $43.53 | -5% |
| Forward | 9.2x | $45.83 | — |
| Current | 9.5x | $45.83 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ACT has the edge over MS in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
MS PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 11x | $134 | -29% |
| Fair | 14x | $178 | -5.7% |
| Forward | 14x | $189 | — |
| Current | 15x | $189 | — |
| Expensive | 18x | $223 | +18% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MS's PE is in its fair range at 15x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 14x next year's earnings.
ACT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect ACT's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over ACT on the outlook, with more favorable valuation and revenue expectations.
ACT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $4.96 | +3.1% |
| Q3 2026 | $4.81 | +11% |
| Q2 2026 | $4.76 | +8.4% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.62 | +4.1% |
| Q4 2025 | $4.52 | +3.4% |
| Q3 2025 | $4.34 | +1.2% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.39 | +5.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $4.44 | +9.9% |
| Q4 2024 | $4.37 | +6.3% |
ACT's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $4.81 over the past year, up 11% from the year before, and higher year over year for nine quarters in a row.
MS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $13.39 | +6.3% |
| Q3 2026 | $12.60 | +29% |
| Q2 2026 | $12.37 | +40% |
| Q1 2026 | $11.04 | +29% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.21 | +28% |
| Q3 2025 | $9.76 | +48% |
| Q2 2025 | $8.84 | +45% |
| Q1 2025 | $8.53 | +55% |
| Q4 2024 | $7.95 | +53% |
MS has the edge over ACT on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
ACT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $312.9M | +0.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $317.3M | +4.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $312.1M | +1.7% |
| Q4 2025 | $312.7M | +3.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $311.5M | +0.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $304.9M | +2% |
| Q1 2025 | $306.8M | +5.2% |
| Q4 2024 | $301.8M | +1.9% |
ACT's revenue has grown year over year for 16 quarters in a row: $313M last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 65% | -2.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 69% | -1 points |
| Q1 2026 | 68% | -0.5 points |
| Q4 2025 | 71% | +2.5 points |
| Q3 2025 | 67% | -6.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 70% | -8.2 points |
| Q1 2025 | 69% | -1.7 points |
| Q4 2024 | 69% | +1.4 points |
ACT has the edge over MS on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
MS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $20.3B | +12% |
| Q2 2026 | $21.3B | +27% |
| Q1 2026 | $20.6B | +16% |
| Q4 2025 | $17.9B | +10% |
| Q3 2025 | $18.2B | +18% |
| Q2 2025 | $16.8B | +12% |
| Q1 2025 | $17.7B | +17% |
| Q4 2024 | $16.2B | +26% |
MS has the edge over ACT on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 32% | -1.2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 34% | +6.9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 34% | +2.8 points |
| Q4 2025 | 32% | +2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 33% | +5.6 points |
| Q2 2025 | 28% | +0.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 31% | +2.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 30% | +14 points |
MS's operating margin was 32% last quarter, down 1.2 points from the same quarter a year ago.
ACT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $183.9M | -4.2% |
| Q2 2026 | $118.5M | -0.8% |
| Q1 2026 | $224M | -1.2% |
| Q4 2025 | $186.3M | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $192M | +2.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $119.5M | -17% |
| Q1 2025 | $226.7M | +21% |
| Q4 2024 | $166.1M | -13% |
ACT has the edge over MS on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
MS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$46B | -$42.7B |
| Q2 2026 | -$2.7B | -123% |
| Q1 2026 | -$7.1B | +$16.9B |
| Q4 2025 | -$2.4B | -120% |
| Q3 2025 | -$3.3B | +$14B |
| Q2 2025 | $11.8B | +368% |
| Q1 2025 | -$24B | -650% |
| Q4 2024 | $11.8B | +$29.6B |
MS's free cash flow was −$58.3B over the past year, against −$3.7B the year before. Free cash flow isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like MS.
ACT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.4% | -2M shares |
| 1 year | -6.8% | -10M shares |
| 3 years | -14% | -22.9M shares |
| 5 years | -15% | -24.6M shares |
| Available history | -15% | -24.5M shares |
ACT has the edge over MS on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $117.9M |
| Q2 2026 | $93.3M |
| Q1 2026 | $93.2M |
| Q4 2025 | $127M |
| Q3 2025 | $105.5M |
| Q2 2025 | $84.6M |
| Q1 2025 | $65.3M |
| Q4 2024 | $74.6M |
ACT spent $431M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 31% from the year before.
MS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.2% | -3M shares |
| 1 year | -1.5% | -24M shares |
| 3 years | -4.7% | -77M shares |
| 5 years | -14% | -246M shares |
| Available history | -4.5% | -74M shares |
MS has 1.6B diluted shares, down 1.5% from a year ago.
ACT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2021 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2020 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2020 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2020 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2019 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
ACT's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA), after holding more cash than debt a year ago. Net leverage isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like ACT.
MS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 7.8x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 7.3x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 8.2x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 8.6x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 8.4x | High |
| Q2 2025 | 8.7x | High |
| Q1 2025 | 8.7x | High |
| Q4 2024 | 7.9x | High |
MS's net debt is about 7.8 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from 8.4 years a year ago. Net leverage isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like MS.
ACT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 49.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 47.2 | Neutral |
ACT's weekly RSI is 49 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 47 (neutral).
MS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 45.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 18.7 | Oversold |
MS's weekly RSI is 45 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 19 (oversold).
ACT PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | ACT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 9.5x | 13x | 27% below |
| PE % | 90 | 65 | 25 pts above |
ACT has the edge over MS on valuation relative to its sector.
MS PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | MS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 15x | 13x | 15% above |
| PE % | 59 | 63 | 4 pts below |
MS is trading at 15x earnings, a 15% premium to the Financial Services sector's median of 13x.
ACT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $46.5 | 1.4% below |
| 20 week MA | $47.3 | 3.2% below |
| 50 week MA | $43.8 | 4.6% above |
| 100 week MA | $39.7 | 15% above |
| 200 week MA | $34.3 | 33% above |
ACT has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8- and 20-week averages, but 33% above its 200-week average.
MS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $186.5 | 1.5% above |
| 20 week MA | $203.3 | 6.9% below |
| 50 week MA | $191.9 | 1.4% below |
| 100 week MA | $164.9 | 15% above |
| 200 week MA | $129.3 | 46% above |
MS's trend is mixed: it's above three of its five weekly moving averages, and 46% above its 200-week average.
ACT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $20.0 | $20.0 | +0.1% |
| 2022 | $20.0 | $24.2 | +21% |
| 2023 | $24.2 | $28.9 | +19% |
| 2024 | $28.9 | $32.4 | +12% |
| 2025 | $32.4 | $40.1 | +24% |
| 2026 YTD | $40.1 | $45.8 | +14% |
ACT has the edge over MS on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
MS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $51.1 | $68.1 | +33% |
| 2021 | $68.1 | $99.3 | +46% |
| 2022 | $99.3 | $86.1 | -13% |
| 2023 | $86.1 | $93.3 | +8.3% |
| 2024 | $93.3 | $126.8 | +36% |
| 2025 | $126.8 | $181.9 | +43% |
| 2026 YTD | $181.9 | $189.2 | +4% |
MS has finished higher in five of the last six years. It's up 4% so far in 2026.