ECBK
ECB Bancorp, Inc.
ECBK has the edge over MS overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS offers stronger modeled upside, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
ECBK Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
ECBK's revenue and profitability are currently healthy. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like ECBK.
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.
ECBK PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | 14x | $20.45 | — |
| Cheap | 18x | $26.66 | +30% |
| Fair | 25x | $37.12 | +82% |
| Expensive | 39x | $58.32 | +185% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ECBK 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.
ECBK Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for ECBK to show an outlook.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for MS, with profitability improving.
ECBK Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.49 | +86% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.38 | +112% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.16 | +104% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.94 | +96% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.80 | +111% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.65 | +63% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.57 | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.48 | -7.7% |
ECBK earned $1.49 per share over the past year, up 86% from the year before.
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.
ECBK Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $11.1M | +26% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.3M | +29% |
| Q1 2026 | $10.2M | +47% |
| Q4 2025 | $9.5M | +34% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.8M | +33% |
| Q2 2025 | $8M | +27% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.9M | +11% |
| Q4 2024 | $7.1M | +15% |
ECBK has the edge over MS on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 42% | +4.6 points |
| Q2 2026 | 43% | +19 points |
| Q1 2026 | 42% | +17 points |
| Q4 2025 | 37% | +9.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 37% | +14 points |
| Q2 2025 | 24% | +7 points |
| Q1 2025 | 25% | +12 points |
| Q4 2024 | 27% | +10 points |
ECBK 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.
ECBK Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3.4M | -13% |
| Q2 2026 | $11.8M | +538% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.8M | +$3.5M |
| Q4 2025 | $3.9M | -14% |
| Q3 2025 | $4M | +359% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.8M | +37% |
| Q1 2025 | -$649K | -$200K |
| Q4 2024 | $4.5M | +77% |
ECBK 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.
ECBK Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.7% | +56.5K shares |
| 1 year | +1.4% | +119K shares |
| 3 years | -1.1% | -93.4K shares |
ECBK has 8M diluted shares, up 1.4% from a year ago, despite $2M in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $188,000 |
| Q2 2026 | $675,000 |
| Q1 2026 | $350,000 |
| Q4 2025 | $513,000 |
| Q3 2025 | $2M |
| Q2 2025 | $1.5M |
| Q1 2025 | $673,000 |
| Q4 2024 | $902,000 |
ECBK spent $2M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 65% 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 the edge over ECBK on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
ECBK Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 16.3x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 17.9x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 19.5x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 26.3x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 28.1x | High |
| Q2 2025 | 34.9x | High |
| Q1 2025 | 35.0x | High |
| Q4 2024 | 40.2x | High |
ECBK's net debt is about 16 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 ECBK.
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 has the edge over ECBK on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
ECBK Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 52.2 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 56.6 | Neutral |
ECBK's weekly RSI is 52 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 57 (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).
ECBK PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | ECBK | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 14x | 13x | 5.4% above |
| PE % | 0 | 58 | 58 pts below |
ECBK 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.
ECBK Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $20.9 | 1.9% below |
| 20 week MA | $20.7 | 1.1% below |
| 50 week MA | $18.9 | 8% above |
| 100 week MA | $17.3 | 18% above |
| 200 week MA | $15.2 | 35% above |
ECBK has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8- and 20-week averages, but 35% 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.
ECBK Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $14.0 | $16.1 | +15% |
| 2023 | $16.1 | $12.6 | -22% |
| 2024 | $12.6 | $14.9 | +19% |
| 2025 | $14.9 | $17.3 | +16% |
| 2026 YTD | $17.3 | $20.5 | +18% |
ECBK 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.