MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has the edge over OCSL overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
OCSL
Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation
OCSL 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.
OCSL Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Weak | |
| Stable | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
OCSL's profitability is currently stable, but its revenue is weak. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like OCSL.
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 OCSL in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
OCSL PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 5.8x | $2.79 | -77% |
| Forward | 8.9x | $12.16 | — |
| Fair | 19x | $8.88 | -27% |
| Current | 25x | $12.16 | — |
| Expensive | 34x | $16.42 | +35% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
OCSL's PE is in its expensive range at 25x. On analysts' estimates for next year's earnings, today's price would be 8.9x, in its cheap range.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over OCSL on the outlook, with more favorable earnings and revenue expectations.
OCSL Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Decline | |
| Stable | |
| Strongly weakening | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect OCSL's earnings and profitability to decline, with its revenue holding steady.
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 OCSL on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
OCSL Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $1.36 | +184% |
| Q2 2026 | $0.48 | -14% |
| Q1 2026 | $0.57 | +338% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.36 | -46% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.39 | -46% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.56 | -38% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.13 | -91% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.67 | -57% |
| Q3 2024 | $0.72 | -56% |
OCSL's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $0.48 over the past year, against $7.24 in early 2021.
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 stronger quarterly revenue trend. Revenue is up 12% for MS versus down 32% for OCSL.
| 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.
OCSL Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2022 | $32.8M | -32% |
| Q1 2022 | $25.6M | -74% |
| Q4 2021 | $51.5M | -30% |
| Q3 2021 | $48M | -39% |
| Q2 2021 | $59.2M | -54% |
| Q4 2020 | $73.7M | +168% |
| Q3 2020 | $78.3M | +227% |
OCSL's revenue has slid since its 2020 peak: $33M last quarter, down 32% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2022 | 46% | -31 points |
| Q1 2022 | 56% | -35 points |
| Q4 2021 | 78% | -11 points |
| Q3 2021 | 77% | -13 points |
| Q2 2021 | 82% | -11 points |
| Q1 2021 | 91% | N/A |
| Q4 2020 | 89% | +38 points |
| Q3 2020 | 90% | +30 points |
OCSL's operating margin was 46% last quarter, down 36 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.
OCSL Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $57.6M | +173% |
| Q1 2026 | $130.7M | +111% |
| Q4 2025 | -$83.5M | -158% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.3M | -99% |
| Q2 2025 | $21.1M | +$81M |
| Q1 2025 | $62M | +$79.6M |
| Q4 2024 | $144M | +12696% |
| Q3 2024 | $95.5M | -61% |
OCSL 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 OCSL on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
OCSL Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -- |
| 1 year | 0% | -- |
| 3 years | +14% | +11M shares |
| 5 years | +47% | +28M shares |
| Available history | +87% | +41.1M shares |
OCSL has 88M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $1.1M |
| Q1 2026 | $1.1M |
| Q4 2025 | $1.1M |
| Q3 2025 | $1.2M |
| Q2 2025 | $3.8M |
| Q1 2025 | $4.3M |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5M |
| Q3 2024 | $1.6M |
OCSL spent $5M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 59% 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'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.
OCSL Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2022 | 38.9x | High |
| Q2 2022 | 24.2x | High |
| Q1 2022 | 9.4x | High |
| Q4 2021 | 5.8x | High |
| Q3 2021 | 5.2x | High |
| Q2 2021 | 3.7x | Elevated |
| Q1 2021 | 3.1x | Elevated |
| Q4 2020 | 2.7x | Moderate |
OCSL's net debt is more than 20 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 5.2 years a year ago. Net leverage isn't a meaningful measure for financial services companies like OCSL.
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).
OCSL Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 49.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 50.3 | Neutral |
OCSL's weekly RSI is 49 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 50 (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 OCSL on valuation relative to its sector.
OCSL PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | OCSL | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 25x | 13x | 95% above |
| PE % | 75 | 63 | 12 pts above |
OCSL is trading at 25x earnings, a 95% 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 has the edge over OCSL on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
OCSL Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $11.9 | 1.9% above |
| 20 week MA | $12.3 | 0.8% below |
| 50 week MA | $12.2 | 0.4% below |
| 100 week MA | $13.3 | 8.5% below |
| 200 week MA | $16.1 | 24% below |
OCSL has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-week average, but 24% below 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 OCSL on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
OCSL Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $16.4 | $16.7 | +1.6% |
| 2021 | $16.7 | $22.5 | +35% |
| 2022 | $22.5 | $20.6 | -8.7% |
| 2023 | $20.6 | $20.4 | -0.6% |
| 2024 | $20.4 | $15.3 | -25% |
| 2025 | $15.3 | $12.8 | -16% |
| 2026 YTD | $12.8 | $12.2 | -4.9% |
OCSL has finished four years in a row lower, and it's down 4.9% so far in 2026.