ESQ
Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc.
ESQ trails on the overall score without a compensating advantage in the available component scores.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has the edge over ESQ overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
ESQ Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
ESQ's revenue and profitability are currently strong. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like ESQ.
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.
ESQ PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 10x | $60.68 | -54% |
| Fair | 14x | $83.73 | -36% |
| Forward | 15x | $132 | — |
| Expensive | 18x | $108 | -18% |
| Current | 22x | $132 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ESQ's PE is in its expensive range at 22x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 15x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
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 has the edge over ESQ in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
ESQ Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly weakening | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect strong earnings and revenue growth for ESQ, but weaker profitability.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over ESQ on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
ESQ Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.80 | +47% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.00 | +5.6% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.05 | +12% |
| Q1 2026 | $5.94 | +13% |
| Q4 2025 | $5.87 | +14% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.68 | +15% |
| Q2 2025 | $5.40 | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.27 | +14% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.14 | +4.7% |
ESQ's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $6.00 over the past year, up 5.6% from the year before, and higher year over year for 23 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 ESQ on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
ESQ Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $61.4M | +63% |
| Q2 2026 | $42.1M | +18% |
| Q1 2026 | $40.5M | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | $39.4M | +19% |
| Q3 2025 | $37.6M | +18% |
| Q2 2025 | $35.8M | +17% |
| Q1 2025 | $33.8M | +15% |
| Q4 2024 | $33.1M | +14% |
ESQ has the edge over MS on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 38% | -8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 43% | +0.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 42% | -3.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 44% | -3.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 46% | -2.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 43% | -4.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 46% | -0.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | 47% | +0.6 points |
ESQ 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.
ESQ Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $13M | -20% |
| Q2 2026 | $14.4M | +54% |
| Q1 2026 | $19.3M | +32% |
| Q4 2025 | $16.5M | +42% |
| Q3 2025 | $16.2M | +55% |
| Q2 2025 | $9.3M | +36% |
| Q1 2025 | $14.7M | +17% |
| Q4 2024 | $11.6M | -29% |
ESQ 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.
ESQ Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +28% | +2.4M shares |
| 1 year | +28% | +2.5M shares |
| 3 years | +33% | +2.8M shares |
| 5 years | +40% | +3.2M shares |
| Available history | +43% | +3.4M shares |
ESQ has 11M diluted shares, up 28% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2023 | — |
| Q3 2023 | — |
| Q1 2023 | $268,000 |
| Q4 2020 | — |
| Q3 2020 | — |
| Q2 2020 | $82,000 |
| Q1 2020 | $485,000 |
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 ESQ on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
ESQ Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -5.8x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -3.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -3.2x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -3.5x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -3.7x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -2.6x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -2.8x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -2.1x | Net Cash |
ESQ 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.
ESQ Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 63.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 75.2 | Neutral |
ESQ's weekly RSI is 64 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 75 (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).
ESQ PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | ESQ | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 22x | 13x | 69% above |
| PE % | 100 | 63 | 37 pts above |
ESQ is trading at 22x earnings, a 69% premium to the Financial Services sector's median of 13x.
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 ESQ on valuation relative to its sector.
ESQ Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $123.6 | 6.5% above |
| 20 week MA | $122.4 | 7.6% above |
| 50 week MA | $113.9 | 16% above |
| 100 week MA | $101.8 | 29% above |
| 200 week MA | $76.0 | 73% above |
ESQ 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.
ESQ Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $26.7 | $19.3 | -28% |
| 2021 | $19.3 | $31.3 | +63% |
| 2022 | $31.3 | $42.8 | +37% |
| 2023 | $42.8 | $50.0 | +17% |
| 2024 | $50.0 | $78.8 | +58% |
| 2025 | $78.8 | $105.0 | +33% |
| 2026 YTD | $105.0 | $131.7 | +25% |
ESQ 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.