MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has the edge over SCM overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger modeled upside.
SCM
Stellus Capital Investment Corporation
SCM 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.
SCM Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Under pressure | |
| Healthy | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
SCM's profitability is currently healthy, but its revenue is under pressure. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like SCM.
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 SCM in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
SCM PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 6.3x | $6.67 | — |
| Cheap | 7x | $4.07 | -39% |
| Fair | 10x | $5.85 | -12% |
| Current | 12x | $6.67 | — |
| Expensive | 20x | $11.34 | +70% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
SCM's PE is in its fair range at 12x. On analysts' estimates for next year's earnings, today's price would be 6.3x, in its cheap range.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
MS has the edge over SCM on the outlook, with more favorable earnings and revenue expectations.
SCM Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Stable | |
| Decline | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect SCM's profitability to improve, but its revenue to decline.
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 SCM on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
SCM Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $1.05 | +82% |
| Q3 2026 | $0.58 | -46% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.03 | -28% |
| Q1 2026 | $0.83 | -42% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.95 | -47% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.08 | -45% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.44 | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.43 | +30% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.79 | +124% |
SCM's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $0.58 over the past year, against $3.54 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 25% for SCM.
| 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.
SCM Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2022 | $8.7M | -25% |
| Q1 2022 | $11.8M | +2.2% |
| Q4 2021 | $17.9M | -17% |
| Q3 2021 | $20.4M | +56% |
| Q2 2021 | $11.6M | -74% |
| Q4 2020 | $21.6M | +199% |
SCM's revenue fell from its 2020 peak and has held roughly level since: $9M last quarter, down 25% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2022 | 22% | -27 points |
| Q1 2022 | 47% | +0.5 points |
| Q4 2021 | 66% | -12 points |
| Q3 2021 | 70% | +8.9 points |
| Q2 2021 | 49% | -40 points |
| Q1 2021 | 46% | N/A |
| Q4 2020 | 78% | +50 points |
| Q3 2020 | 61% | N/A |
SCM's operating margin was 22% last quarter, down 27 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.
SCM Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $957.1K | +$21.2M |
| Q2 2026 | $33.4M | +41% |
| Q1 2026 | $22.8M | +$59.7M |
| Q4 2025 | $9M | +$40.8M |
| Q3 2025 | -$20.2M | -272% |
| Q2 2025 | $23.7M | +$36.8M |
| Q1 2025 | -$36.9M | -928% |
| Q4 2024 | -$31.8M | -226% |
SCM 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 SCM on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
SCM Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.4% | -403K shares |
| 1 year | -0.1% | -14.8K shares |
| 3 years | +25% | +5.6M shares |
| 5 years | +46% | +9M shares |
| Available history | +47% | +9M shares |
SCM has 28M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.1M |
| Q2 2022 | — |
| Q1 2022 | — |
| Q4 2021 | — |
| Q3 2021 | — |
| Q2 2021 | — |
| Q1 2021 | — |
| Q4 2020 | $2.00 |
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.
SCM Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2022 | 16.8x | High |
| Q1 2022 | 14.5x | High |
| Q4 2021 | 12.8x | High |
| Q3 2021 | 11.7x | High |
| Q2 2021 | 13.9x | High |
| Q1 2021 | 6.2x | High |
| Q4 2020 | 17.7x | High |
| Q3 2020 | 54.9x | High |
SCM's net debt is about 17 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 SCM.
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).
SCM Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 33.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 18.1 | Oversold |
SCM's weekly RSI is 34 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 18 (oversold).
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.
SCM PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | SCM | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 12x | 13x | 12% below |
| PE % | 60 | 63 | 3 pts below |
SCM has the edge over MS on valuation relative to its sector.
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 SCM on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
SCM Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $7.11 | 6.2% below |
| 20 week MA | $7.76 | 14% below |
| 50 week MA | $9.41 | 29% below |
| 100 week MA | $11.5 | 42% below |
| 200 week MA | $12.7 | 47% below |
SCM is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 47% 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 SCM on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
SCM Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $14.5 | $10.7 | -26% |
| 2021 | $10.7 | $13.0 | +21% |
| 2022 | $13.0 | $13.0 | +0.5% |
| 2023 | $13.0 | $12.9 | -1.4% |
| 2024 | $12.9 | $13.8 | +7% |
| 2025 | $13.8 | $12.6 | -8.6% |
| 2026 YTD | $12.6 | $6.67 | -47% |
SCM has finished lower in three of the last six years. It's down 47% so far in 2026.