MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has the edge over OCFC overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger modeled upside.
OCFC
OceanFirst Financial Corp.
OCFC trails on the overall score without a compensating advantage in the available component scores.
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.
OCFC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
OCFC's revenue is currently strong, and its profitability is stable. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like OCFC.
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 OCFC in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
OCFC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 8.4x | $18.09 | — |
| Cheap | 8.9x | $6.52 | -64% |
| Fair | 11x | $8.38 | -54% |
| Expensive | 16x | $11.65 | -36% |
| Current | 25x | $18.09 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
OCFC's PE is in its expensive range at 25x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 8.4x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over OCFC on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
OCFC Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly weakening | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect strong earnings and revenue growth for OCFC, but weaker profitability.
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 OCFC on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
OCFC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $2.16 | +196% |
| Q3 2026 | $0.73 | -43% |
| Q2 2026 | $0.86 | -39% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.18 | -23% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.17 | -29% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.29 | -26% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.41 | -15% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.53 | -11% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.65 | -2.9% |
OCFC's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $0.73 over the past year, against $2.46 in early 2023.
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 OCFC 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 OCFC on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
OCFC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $185.1M | +80% |
| Q2 2026 | $131.3M | +32% |
| Q1 2026 | $103.2M | +5.4% |
| Q4 2025 | $104.7M | +9.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $103M | +6.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $99.4M | +6.6% |
| Q1 2025 | $97.9M | -0.6% |
| Q4 2024 | $95.6M | -4.1% |
OCFC's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $185M last quarter, up 80% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 16% | -6 points |
| Q2 2026 | -1.9% | -27 points |
| Q1 2026 | 26% | -2.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 16% | -12 points |
| Q3 2025 | 22% | -12 points |
| Q2 2025 | 25% | -8.8 points |
| Q1 2025 | 29% | -11 points |
| Q4 2024 | 29% | -7.9 points |
OCFC's operating margin was 16% last quarter, down 6 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the bottom of its range since 2019.
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.
OCFC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $128M | +461% |
| Q2 2026 | $33.5M | +23% |
| Q1 2026 | $23.3M | +$26.9M |
| Q4 2025 | $33.1M | -23% |
| Q3 2025 | $22.8M | +$46.3M |
| Q2 2025 | $27.2M | +39% |
| Q1 2025 | -$3.6M | -108% |
| Q4 2024 | $43.2M | +$71.7M |
OCFC has the edge over MS on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
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 OCFC on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
OCFC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +40% | +27.9M shares |
| 1 year | +72% | +41.1M shares |
| 3 years | +66% | +39M shares |
| 5 years | +65% | +38.6M shares |
| Available history | +93% | +47.4M shares |
OCFC has 98M diluted shares, up 72% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $755,000 |
| Q2 2026 | $3.6M |
| Q1 2026 | $3.4M |
| Q4 2025 | $558,000 |
| Q3 2025 | $42,000 |
| Q2 2025 | $17.4M |
| Q1 2025 | $6.9M |
| Q4 2024 | $5,000 |
OCFC spent $8M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 66% from the year before.
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 OCFC on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
OCFC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 24.1x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 26.1x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 12.8x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 14.4x | High |
| Q2 2025 | 7.8x | High |
| Q1 2025 | 7.1x | High |
| Q4 2024 | 0.5x | Very low |
OCFC's net debt is more than 20 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 14 years a year ago. Net leverage isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like OCFC.
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).
OCFC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 49.8 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 55.4 | Neutral |
OCFC's weekly RSI is 50 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 55 (neutral).
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 OCFC on valuation relative to its sector.
OCFC PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | OCFC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 25x | 13x | 90% above |
| PE % | 100 | 63 | 37 pts above |
OCFC is trading at 25x earnings, a 90% premium to the Financial Services sector's median of 13x.
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.
OCFC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $17.1 | 5.9% above |
| 20 week MA | $18.3 | 1.4% below |
| 50 week MA | $18.6 | 2.5% below |
| 100 week MA | $18.1 | 0.2% above |
| 200 week MA | $17.5 | 3.1% above |
OCFC's trend is mixed: it's above three of its five weekly moving averages, and 3.1% above its 200-week average.
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 OCFC on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
OCFC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $25.3 | $18.7 | -26% |
| 2021 | $18.7 | $22.0 | +18% |
| 2022 | $22.0 | $21.5 | -2.4% |
| 2023 | $21.5 | $17.4 | -19% |
| 2024 | $17.4 | $17.7 | +1.8% |
| 2025 | $17.7 | $19.8 | +12% |
| 2026 YTD | $19.8 | $18.1 | -8.5% |
OCFC has finished lower in three of the last six years. It's down 8.5% so far in 2026.