MCY
Mercury General Corporation
MCY has a slight edge over MS overall, supported by stronger valuation.
MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
MCY Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
MCY'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 MCY.
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.
MCY PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 6.4x | $74.50 | -14% |
| Current | 7.4x | $86.41 | — |
| Forward | 7.6x | $86.41 | — |
| Fair | 10x | $119 | +37% |
| Expensive | 13x | $152 | +76% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MCY 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.
MCY Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect MCY's revenue to grow, but its profitability to weaken.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over MCY on the outlook, with more favorable valuation and earnings expectations.
MCY Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $11.41 | -1.7% |
| Q3 2026 | $11.61 | +46% |
| Q2 2026 | $16.92 | +140% |
| Q1 2026 | $15.17 | +194% |
| Q4 2025 | $9.77 | +16% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.93 | -21% |
| Q2 2025 | $7.04 | +22% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.16 | +33% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.45 | +386% |
MCY earned $11.61 per share over the past year, up 46% 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 MCY on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
MCY Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.4B | -13% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.7B | +14% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.5B | +10% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.5B | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.6B | +3.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.5B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.4B | +9.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.4B | -0.6% |
MCY's revenue is growing: $1.4B last quarter, down 13% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1.7% | -24 points |
| Q2 2026 | 19% | +5.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 15% | +26 points |
| Q4 2025 | 16% | +7.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 22% | +3.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 14% | +8.2 points |
| Q1 2025 | -10% | -17 points |
| Q4 2024 | 9% | -8.3 points |
MCY's operating margin was −1.7% last quarter, down 24 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 has the edge over MCY on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| 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 MCY on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
MCY Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $372.6M | -22% |
| Q2 2026 | $201.6M | -44% |
| Q1 2026 | $308.8M | +$390.7M |
| Q4 2025 | $273.9M | +16% |
| Q3 2025 | $479.5M | +57% |
| Q2 2025 | $357.2M | +34% |
| Q1 2025 | -$81.9M | -145% |
| Q4 2024 | $236M | +9.5% |
MCY 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.
MCY Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -- |
| 1 year | 0% | -- |
| 3 years | 0% | +18K shares |
| 5 years | 0% | +14K shares |
| Available history | +0.1% | +29K shares |
MCY has 55M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
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 MCY on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
MCY Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -1.2x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.0x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -2.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -2.1x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -3.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
MCY 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.
MCY Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 34.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 19.1 | Oversold |
MCY's weekly RSI is 34 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 19 (oversold).
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).
MCY PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | MCY | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 7.4x | 13x | 43% below |
| PE % | 32 | 63 | 31 pts below |
MCY 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.
MCY Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $97.7 | 12% below |
| 20 week MA | $102.7 | 16% below |
| 50 week MA | $97.3 | 11% below |
| 100 week MA | $81.9 | 5.5% above |
| 200 week MA | $63.2 | 37% above |
MCY has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 37% 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 MCY on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
MCY Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $48.6 | $51.8 | +6.6% |
| 2021 | $51.8 | $51.2 | -1.2% |
| 2022 | $51.2 | $33.5 | -35% |
| 2023 | $33.5 | $37.3 | +12% |
| 2024 | $37.3 | $67.0 | +80% |
| 2025 | $67.0 | $94.0 | +40% |
| 2026 YTD | $94.0 | $86.4 | -8% |
MCY has finished higher in four of the last six years. It's down 8% 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 MCY on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.