ASML
ASML Holding N.V.
ASML has the edge over MS overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
ASML Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Unavailable | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
ASML's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently strong. There isn't enough data to rate its revenue.
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.
ASML PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 35x | $1,375 | -8.2% |
| Current | 39x | $1,497 | — |
| Fair | 43x | $1,684 | +13% |
| Expensive | 56x | $2,177 | +45% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ASML 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.
ASML Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect strong earnings and revenue growth for ASML, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for MS, with profitability improving.
ASML Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $38.88 | +44% |
| Q2 2026 | $30.61 | +15% |
| Q3 2025 | $26.91 | +38% |
| Q2 2025 | $26.68 | +40% |
| Q1 2025 | $24.60 | +22% |
| Q4 2024 | $21.42 | -2.9% |
| Q3 2024 | $19.46 | -8.4% |
| Q2 2024 | $19.11 | -7.5% |
ASML has the stronger earnings trend. Trailing diluted EPS is up 58% for ASML versus MS up 29%.
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.
ASML Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $13B | +55% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.4B | +21% |
| Q1 2026 | $9.7B | +13% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.8B | +4.9% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.3B | +0.7% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.3B | +0.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $8.5B | +23% |
| Q1 2025 | $8.6B | +46% |
ASML's revenue has grown year over year for four quarters in a row: $13B last quarter, up 55% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 44% | +12 points |
| Q2 2026 | 37% | +4.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 36% | +1.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 35% | -0.1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 33% | -3.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 33% | +0.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 35% | +5.3 points |
| Q1 2025 | 35% | +9.1 points |
ASML 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's revenue has grown year over year for 14 quarters in a row: $20.3B last quarter, up 12% from the same quarter a year ago.
| 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.
ASML Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $12.6B | +4571% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.6B | +292% |
| Q1 2026 | -$2.9B | -$2.4B |
| Q4 2025 | $12.2B | +24% |
| Q3 2025 | $270.7M | -54% |
| Q3 2025 | $270.7M | -54% |
| Q2 2025 | $397.4M | -10% |
| Q1 2025 | -$527.8M | +$223M |
ASML 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.
ASML Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.4% | -1.4M shares |
| 1 year | -1.1% | -4.1M shares |
| 3 years | -2.6% | -10.3M shares |
| 5 years | -5.3% | -21.5M shares |
| Available history | -8.6% | -36.2M shares |
ASML has 384M diluted shares, down 1.1% from a year ago, with $8.7B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.5B |
| Q2 2026 | $1.2B |
| Q1 2026 | $1.1B |
| Q4 2025 | $1.9B |
| Q3 2025 | $191.3M |
| Q3 2025 | $191.3M |
| Q2 2025 | $1.6B |
| Q1 2025 | $2.9B |
ASML spent $8.7B buying back its own shares over the past year.
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 ASML on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
ASML Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2024 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2024 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
ASML 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.
ASML Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 16.3 | Oversold |
ASML's weekly RSI is 44 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 16 (oversold).
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).
ASML PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | ASML | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 39x | 28x | 38% above |
| PE % | 30 | 35 | 5 pts below |
ASML is trading at 39x earnings, a 38% premium to the Technology sector's median of 28x, though its earnings don't support one.
MS PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | MS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 15x | 13x | 15% above |
| PE % | 59 | 63 | 4 pts below |
MS has the edge over ASML on valuation relative to its sector.
ASML Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $1,636.6 | 8.5% below |
| 20 week MA | $1,696.6 | 12% below |
| 50 week MA | $1,531.1 | 2.2% below |
| 100 week MA | $1,160.1 | 29% above |
| 200 week MA | $964.4 | 55% above |
ASML has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 55% 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 has the edge over ASML on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
ASML Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $296.7 | $483.1 | +63% |
| 2021 | $483.1 | $801.4 | +66% |
| 2022 | $801.4 | $551.4 | -31% |
| 2023 | $551.4 | $756.9 | +37% |
| 2024 | $756.9 | $713.6 | -5.7% |
| 2025 | $713.6 | $1,072.8 | +50% |
| 2026 YTD | $1,072.8 | $1,497.1 | +40% |
ASML 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.