INDB
Independent Bank Corp.
INDB has the edge over MS overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
INDB Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
INDB's revenue and profitability are currently healthy. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like INDB.
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.
INDB PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 10x | $67.21 | -20% |
| Forward | 10x | $84.12 | — |
| Current | 12x | $84.12 | — |
| Fair | 15x | $100 | +19% |
| Expensive | 18x | $122 | +44% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
INDB 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.
INDB Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect INDB's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over INDB on the outlook, with more favorable revenue expectations.
INDB Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.09 | +20% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.74 | +64% |
| Q2 2026 | $5.53 | +25% |
| Q1 2026 | $5.03 | +13% |
| Q4 2025 | $4.44 | -1.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $4.11 | -11% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.43 | -11% |
| Q1 2025 | $4.44 | -14% |
| Q4 2024 | $4.52 | -17% |
INDB earned $6.74 per share over the past year, up 64% 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 has the edge over INDB on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
INDB Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $261.9M | +7.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $253.3M | +39% |
| Q1 2026 | $252.7M | +42% |
| Q4 2025 | $253.9M | +44% |
| Q3 2025 | $243.7M | +39% |
| Q2 2025 | $181.8M | +6.8% |
| Q1 2025 | $178M | +6.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $176.9M | -0.2% |
INDB's revenue has grown year over year for seven quarters in a row: $262M last quarter, up 7.5% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 45% | +27 points |
| Q2 2026 | 42% | +6 points |
| Q1 2026 | 41% | +9.2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 37% | +1.8 points |
| Q3 2025 | 18% | -13 points |
| Q2 2025 | 36% | -2.8 points |
| Q1 2025 | 32% | -5.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 36% | -4.5 points |
INDB 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.
INDB Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $99.6M | +100% |
| Q2 2026 | $67M | -35% |
| Q1 2026 | $111.6M | +887% |
| Q4 2025 | $75.5M | +107% |
| Q3 2025 | $49.7M | -23% |
| Q2 2025 | $102.5M | +66% |
| Q1 2025 | $11.3M | -76% |
| Q4 2024 | $36.5M | -23% |
INDB 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.
INDB Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.7% | -820K shares |
| 1 year | -5.4% | -2.7M shares |
| 3 years | +7% | +3.1M shares |
| 5 years | +43% | +14.2M shares |
| Available history | +37% | +12.8M shares |
INDB has the edge over MS on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $57.4M |
| Q2 2026 | $75M |
| Q1 2026 | $63.3M |
| Q4 2025 | $37.5M |
| Q3 2025 | $23.4M |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | — |
| Q4 2024 | — |
INDB spent $233M buying back its own shares over the past year, about 10 times what it spent 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 1.6B diluted shares, down 1.5% from a year ago.
INDB Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 1.0x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 1.4x | Healthy |
| Q4 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 1.9x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 2.1x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
INDB 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.
INDB Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 56.1 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 66.4 | Neutral |
INDB's weekly RSI is 56 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 66 (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).
INDB PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | INDB | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 12x | 13x | 4.1% below |
| PE % | 31 | 63 | 32 pts below |
INDB 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.
INDB Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $81.6 | 3.1% above |
| 20 week MA | $82.9 | 1.4% above |
| 50 week MA | $80.2 | 4.9% above |
| 100 week MA | $72.9 | 15% above |
| 200 week MA | $65.4 | 29% above |
INDB 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.
INDB Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $83.8 | $74.0 | -12% |
| 2021 | $74.0 | $79.8 | +7.9% |
| 2022 | $79.8 | $84.8 | +6.2% |
| 2023 | $84.8 | $65.8 | -22% |
| 2024 | $65.8 | $65.0 | -1.2% |
| 2025 | $65.0 | $75.7 | +16% |
| 2026 YTD | $75.7 | $84.1 | +11% |
INDB 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.