LPLA
LPL Financial Holdings Inc.
LPLA has the edge over MS overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger modeled upside.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
LPLA Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
LPLA's revenue and profitability are currently healthy. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like LPLA.
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.
LPLA PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 10x | $292 | — |
| Cheap | 15x | $264 | -9.6% |
| Current | 17x | $292 | — |
| Fair | 24x | $417 | +43% |
| Expensive | 30x | $516 | +77% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
LPLA 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.
LPLA Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for LPLA, 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.
LPLA Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $27.87 | +61% |
| Q3 2026 | $17.34 | +60% |
| Q2 2026 | $12.45 | -15% |
| Q1 2026 | $11.11 | -23% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.92 | -22% |
| Q3 2025 | $10.85 | -19% |
| Q2 2025 | $14.61 | +14% |
| Q1 2025 | $14.44 | +8.7% |
| Q4 2024 | $14.03 | +2.5% |
LPLA earned $17.34 per share over the past year, up 60% 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 LPLA on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
LPLA Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $5.3B | +17% |
| Q2 2026 | $5.2B | +35% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.9B | +35% |
| Q4 2025 | $4.9B | +40% |
| Q3 2025 | $4.6B | +46% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.8B | +31% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.7B | +30% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.5B | +33% |
LPLA has the edge over MS on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 9.1% | +9.8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 9.9% | +0.3 points |
| Q1 2026 | 9.8% | -1.6 points |
| Q4 2025 | 8.1% | -1.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | -0.8% | -12 points |
| Q2 2025 | 9.6% | -1.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 11% | -1.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | 9.7% | -1.4 points |
LPLA's operating margin was 9.1% last quarter, up 9.8 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 has the edge over LPLA on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
LPLA Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $67.5M | +$1.9B |
| Q2 2026 | $202.5M | +260% |
| Q1 2026 | $124.6M | -43% |
| Q4 2025 | $613.3M | +$957.6M |
| Q3 2025 | -$1.9B | -3106% |
| Q2 2025 | $56.3M | +$364.1M |
| Q1 2025 | $220.3M | -28% |
| Q4 2024 | -$344.3M | -1038% |
LPLA 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.
LPLA Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.3% | -1.1M shares |
| 1 year | -1.7% | -1.4M shares |
| 3 years | +2.4% | +1.8M shares |
| 5 years | -3.5% | -2.9M shares |
| Available history | -6.7% | -5.7M shares |
LPLA has the edge over MS on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $300.6M |
| Q2 2026 | $309.5M |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $240,000 |
| Q1 2025 | $100.2M |
| Q4 2024 | $100.1M |
LPLA spent $610M buying back its own shares over the past year, about three 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.
LPLA Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 2.9x | Moderate |
| Q2 2026 | 3.5x | Elevated |
| Q1 2026 | 3.8x | Elevated |
| Q4 2025 | 4.0x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 4.2x | High |
| Q2 2025 | 1.6x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 2.5x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 2.7x | Moderate |
LPLA 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.
LPLA Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 41.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 20.0 | Neutral |
LPLA's weekly RSI is 41 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 20 (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).
LPLA PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | LPLA | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 17x | 13x | 29% above |
| PE % | 27 | 63 | 36 pts below |
LPLA is trading at 17x earnings, a 29% 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 LPLA on valuation relative to its sector.
LPLA Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $308.7 | 5.3% below |
| 20 week MA | $329.8 | 11% below |
| 50 week MA | $326.3 | 10% below |
| 100 week MA | $339.2 | 14% below |
| 200 week MA | $289.8 | 0.9% above |
LPLA has fallen below most of its moving averages, though it's still 0.9% 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 LPLA on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
LPLA Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $92.6 | $103.8 | +12% |
| 2021 | $103.8 | $162.6 | +57% |
| 2022 | $162.6 | $215.8 | +33% |
| 2023 | $215.8 | $227.6 | +5.5% |
| 2024 | $227.6 | $331.9 | +46% |
| 2025 | $331.9 | $372.2 | +12% |
| 2026 YTD | $372.2 | $292.3 | -21% |
LPLA has finished every year since 2020 higher, and it's down 21% so far in 2026.
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 the edge over LPLA on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.