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Morgan Stanley MS

Morgan Stanley scores good on business quality (6.3 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.

Last price$190.02Oct 10, 2026
Business qualityGood
Next earningsOct 14, 2026, before the open
Insiders, 90 daysSelling

Why it matters

  1. What Morgan Stanley does

    Morgan Stanley generates revenue through institutional securities, wealth management, and investment management services, charging fees and commissions to global corporate, institutional, and individual clients. The firm is actively managing market breadth gaps within the S&P 500 to guide its institutional client base through shifting equity landscapes.

  2. What it does best

    Morgan Stanley delivers top quartile revenue growth of 11.5% compared to its sector, driven by an integrated wealth and institutional model that locks in high-net-worth clients. This network scale makes asset retention resilient against rivals like Goldman Sachs.

  3. The main risk

    Negative free cash flow of -$18.6B drains liquidity and exposes the firm to funding pressures if institutional trading volumes contract or credit spreads widen unexpectedly.

Quality, check by check

Scored against its own industry, from company filings.

ProfitabilityFair

Operating margin of 20.3% and a net margin of 15.2% reflect steady fee generation, but negative free cash flow margin of 7% indicates scale does not yet cleanly convert to cash.

MoatWeak

The firm relies on a brand and advisory network locking in institutional and wealthy clients, backed by a 58th percentile return on equity that trails top wealth platforms.

GrowthFast

Revenue grew 11.5% to $128.8B, continuing a steady multi-year acceleration visible since 2022 when revenue stood at $65.9B.

Financial healthStrong

Total debt sits at $881.9B against cash of $111.7B, while free cash flow remains negative at -$18.6B. The balance sheet requires careful capital management as leverage stays elevated.

Insiders

Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.

3 sold $8.9M outside pre-planned sales.

Our sealed record on MS

Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.

The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.

Questions

Is MS a good business?

Morgan Stanley scores good on the Cluenex quality check (6.3 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is fair, moat weak, growth fast and financial health strong.

Are insiders buying MS?

In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: 3 sold $8.9M outside pre-planned sales.

When does MS report earnings?

Oct 14, 2026, before the open.

For members

See MS today

  • Today's verdict on MS, and why
  • Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
  • The exact price that would change the verdict
  • Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
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Cite this page: Cluenex, “Morgan Stanley (MS)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/ms/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.