ASB
Associated Banc-Corp
ASB has a slight edge over MS overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
ASB Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
ASB's revenue and profitability are currently healthy. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like ASB.
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.
ASB PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 7.6x | $22.02 | -29% |
| Forward | 9.4x | $30.81 | — |
| Fair | 11x | $30.62 | -0.6% |
| Current | 11x | $30.81 | — |
| Expensive | 22x | $62.92 | +104% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ASB 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.
ASB Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for ASB, with profitability holding steady.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over ASB on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
ASB Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $3.30 | +14% |
| Q3 2026 | $2.89 | +232% |
| Q2 2026 | $2.86 | +309% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.88 | +265% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.77 | +285% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.87 | -28% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.70 | -40% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.79 | -20% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.72 | -36% |
ASB's earnings per share have jumped to their highest in seven years: $2.89 over the past year, up from $0.87 the year before. Its recent earnings include one-off gains.
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's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $12.60 over the past year, up 29% from the year before, and higher year over year for 10 quarters in a row.
ASB Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $464.4M | +20% |
| Q2 2026 | $450.4M | +23% |
| Q1 2026 | $383M | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $389.4M | +513% |
| Q3 2025 | $386.5M | +17% |
| Q2 2025 | $367M | +14% |
| Q1 2025 | $344.7M | +6.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $63.5M | -48% |
ASB's revenue has grown year over year for seven quarters in a row: $464M last quarter, up 20% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 41% | +1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 35% | -2.7 points |
| Q1 2026 | 40% | +4.8 points |
| Q4 2025 | 42% | +322 points |
| Q3 2025 | 40% | +7.1 points |
| Q2 2025 | 38% | +6.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 35% | +3.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | -280% | -167 points |
ASB 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 ASB on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| 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.
ASB Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $329.2M | +108% |
| Q2 2026 | $207.1M | +46% |
| Q1 2026 | $135.9M | +38% |
| Q4 2025 | $218.1M | +5.3% |
| Q3 2025 | $158M | +50% |
| Q2 2025 | $141.5M | +25% |
| Q1 2025 | $98.2M | -36% |
| Q4 2024 | $207.1M | +220% |
ASB 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.
ASB Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.7% | -1.4M shares |
| 1 year | +13% | +21.8M shares |
| 3 years | +25% | +37.5M shares |
| 5 years | +25% | +37.4M shares |
| Available history | +16% | +26.6M shares |
ASB has 189M diluted shares, up 13% from a year ago.
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 the edge over ASB on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
ASB Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 1.8x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 2.2x | Moderate |
ASB has the edge over MS on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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.
ASB Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 58.3 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 55.9 | Neutral |
ASB's weekly RSI is 58 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 56 (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).
ASB PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | ASB | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 11x | 13x | 18% below |
| PE % | 51 | 63 | 12 pts below |
ASB 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.
ASB Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $29.7 | 3.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $30.4 | 1.3% above |
| 50 week MA | $28.5 | 8.2% above |
| 100 week MA | $26.4 | 17% above |
| 200 week MA | $23.3 | 32% above |
ASB has the edge over MS on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
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.
ASB Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $22.0 | $17.0 | -23% |
| 2021 | $17.0 | $22.5 | +32% |
| 2022 | $22.5 | $22.7 | +1.2% |
| 2023 | $22.7 | $21.4 | -5.9% |
| 2024 | $21.4 | $24.1 | +12% |
| 2025 | $24.1 | $26.4 | +9.6% |
| 2026 YTD | $26.4 | $30.8 | +17% |
ASB 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.