BNS
The Bank of Nova Scotia
BNS offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has a slight edge over BNS overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger fundamentals.
BNS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
BNS'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 BNS.
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.
BNS PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 8.8x | $44.63 | -52% |
| Fair | 12x | $58.69 | -37% |
| Expensive | 16x | $79.47 | -14% |
| Current | 18x | $92.66 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
BNS 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.
BNS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for BNS, with profitability improving.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for MS, with profitability improving.
BNS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $5.08 | +52% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.71 | +38% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.96 | -4.1% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.66 | -8.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.35 | -21% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.42 | -20% |
| Q4 2024 | $4.13 | +1.2% |
| Q3 2024 | $4.00 | -10% |
BNS has the stronger earnings trend. Trailing diluted EPS is up 52% for BNS 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.
BNS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $12.1B | -4.2% |
| Q1 2026 | $12.4B | -7.5% |
| Q4 2025 | $12.8B | -3.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $12.6B | -6.8% |
| Q2 2025 | $12.6B | -3.3% |
| Q1 2025 | $13.4B | +127% |
| Q4 2024 | $13.3B | +138% |
| Q3 2024 | $13.6B | +140% |
MS has the stronger quarterly revenue trend. Revenue is down 4.2% for BNS versus up 12% for MS.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 20% | +5.6 points |
| Q1 2026 | 18% | +9 points |
| Q4 2025 | 16% | +4.1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 19% | +7.9 points |
| Q2 2025 | 14% | +14 points |
| Q1 2025 | 9% | -23 points |
| Q4 2024 | 12% | -7.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 11% | -23 points |
BNS's operating margin was 20% last quarter, up 5.6 points from the same quarter a year ago.
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.
BNS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $11.9B | +619% |
| Q1 2026 | $8.9B | +168% |
| Q4 2025 | -$4.5B | -190% |
| Q3 2025 | $3B | -38% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.7B | +$2.6B |
| Q1 2025 | $3.3B | +120% |
| Q4 2024 | $5B | +54% |
| Q3 2024 | $4.9B | -70% |
BNS has the stronger cash trend. Its trailing FCF is up 49% versus its history, compared with MS at down 492%.
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.
BNS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.2% | -15M shares |
| 1 year | -1.3% | -16M shares |
| 3 years | +2.8% | +33M shares |
| 5 years | +0.6% | +7M shares |
| Available history | -1.7% | -21M shares |
BNS has 1.2B diluted shares, down 1.3% from a year ago, with $1.4B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $451.3M |
| Q1 2026 | $341M |
| Q4 2025 | $460.5M |
| Q3 2025 | $168.7M |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | — |
| Q4 2024 | — |
| Q3 2024 | — |
BNS spent $1.4B buying back its own shares over the past year, after none 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 the edge over BNS on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
BNS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 34.6x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 33.3x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 36.2x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 35.9x | High |
| Q2 2025 | 39.4x | High |
| Q1 2025 | 39.5x | High |
| Q4 2024 | 20.4x | High |
| Q3 2024 | 21.9x | High |
BNS's net debt is more than 20 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from more than 20 years a year ago. Net leverage isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like BNS.
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.
BNS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 60.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 63.5 | Neutral |
BNS's weekly RSI is 60 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 63 (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).
BNS PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | BNS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 18x | 13x | 40% above |
| PE % | 98 | 63 | 35 pts above |
BNS is trading at 18x earnings, a 40% premium to the Financial Services sector's median of 13x, 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 BNS on valuation relative to its sector.
BNS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $92.0 | 0.8% above |
| 20 week MA | $90.7 | 2.1% above |
| 50 week MA | $81.7 | 13% above |
| 100 week MA | $68.7 | 35% above |
| 200 week MA | $58.7 | 58% above |
BNS 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.
BNS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $56.1 | $53.5 | -4.7% |
| 2021 | $53.5 | $69.8 | +30% |
| 2022 | $69.8 | $48.8 | -30% |
| 2023 | $48.8 | $48.7 | -0.3% |
| 2024 | $48.7 | $53.8 | +10% |
| 2025 | $53.8 | $74.2 | +38% |
| 2026 YTD | $74.2 | $92.7 | +25% |
BNS 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.