MS
Morgan Stanley
MS has the edge over WHG overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger modeled upside.
WHG
Westwood Holdings Group, Inc.
WHG offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
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.
WHG Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| N/A | |
| N/A |
WHG's profitability is currently healthy, and its revenue is stable. Free cash flow and net leverage aren't meaningful measures for financial services companies like WHG.
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.
WHG PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 14x | $11.25 | -40% |
| Fair | 23x | $18.30 | -1.8% |
| Current | 23x | $18.63 | — |
| Expensive | 50x | $40.71 | +119% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
WHG has the edge over MS in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
MS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for MS, with profitability improving.
WHG Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for WHG to show an outlook.
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 WHG on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
WHG Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $0.81 | +350% |
| Q2 2026 | $0.88 | +$1.10 |
| Q1 2026 | $0.83 | +$1.44 |
| Q4 2025 | $0.79 | +$1.18 |
| Q3 2025 | $0.18 | -44% |
| Q2 2025 | -$0.22 | -131% |
| Q1 2025 | -$0.61 | -145% |
| Q4 2024 | -$0.39 | -133% |
WHG's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $0.81 over the past year, against $1.35 in early 2024.
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 WHG 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 WHG on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
WHG Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $26.6M | +9.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $25.3M | +9.6% |
| Q1 2026 | $25M | +7.4% |
| Q4 2025 | $27.1M | +32% |
| Q3 2025 | $24.3M | +2.4% |
| Q2 2025 | $23.1M | +1.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $23.3M | +2.3% |
| Q4 2024 | $20.5M | -12% |
WHG's revenue has grown year over year for seven quarters in a row: $27M last quarter, up 9.4% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.2% | -3.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 8.1% | +4.4 points |
| Q1 2026 | -6% | -5.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 8% | -4.5 points |
| Q3 2025 | 8.3% | +10 points |
| Q2 2025 | 3.8% | +22 points |
| Q1 2025 | -0.3% | -13 points |
| Q4 2024 | 13% | +0.3 points |
WHG's operating margin was 5.2% last quarter, down 3.1 points from the same quarter a year ago.
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.
WHG Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $5.9M | -30% |
| Q1 2026 | -$2.8M | +$2.1M |
| Q4 2025 | $8M | -9.7% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.5M | +1531% |
| Q1 2025 | -$4.9M | -160% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.8M | +98% |
| Q3 2024 | $519K | +$2.3M |
| Q1 2024 | $8.1M | +$11.4M |
WHG 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 WHG on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
WHG Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +1.2% | +112K shares |
| 1 year | +2.8% | +251K shares |
| 3 years | +13% | +1.1M shares |
| 5 years | +16% | +1.2M shares |
| Available history | +8.6% | +729K shares |
WHG has 9M diluted shares, up 2.8% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q4 2024 | — |
| Q3 2024 | $273,000 |
| Q4 2023 | — |
| Q3 2023 | — |
| Q2 2023 | — |
| Q1 2023 | — |
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.
WHG Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -3.3x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -2.7x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2024 | -2.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2023 | -1.9x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2023 | -4.5x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2022 | -3.3x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2022 | -2.7x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2021 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
WHG has the edge over MS on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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).
WHG Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 50.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 27.1 | Neutral |
WHG's weekly RSI is 50 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 27 (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 WHG on valuation relative to its sector.
WHG PE vs Financial Services Sector
| Metric | WHG | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 23x | 13x | 77% above |
| PE % | 51 | 63 | 12 pts below |
WHG is trading at 23x earnings, a 77% 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.
WHG Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $18.9 | 1.4% below |
| 20 week MA | $19.2 | 3% below |
| 50 week MA | $17.9 | 4% above |
| 100 week MA | $17.1 | 9.3% above |
| 200 week MA | $14.7 | 27% above |
WHG has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8- and 20-week averages, but 27% 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 finished higher in five of the last six years. It's up 4% so far in 2026.
WHG Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $29.6 | $13.4 | -55% |
| 2021 | $13.4 | $16.8 | +26% |
| 2022 | $16.8 | $10.5 | -38% |
| 2023 | $10.5 | $12.6 | +20% |
| 2024 | $12.6 | $14.1 | +12% |
| 2025 | $14.1 | $17.8 | +26% |
| 2026 YTD | $17.8 | $18.6 | +4.7% |
WHG has the edge over MS on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.