MCO vs. MS: Moody's vs. Morgan Stanley Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS) both belong to the Capital Markets industry, though MCO is classified under Financial Exchanges & Data while MS falls under Investment Banking & Brokerage.

Company profile comparison for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Profile Item	MCO	MS
Name	Moody's Corporation	Morgan Stanley Common Stock
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Financials	Financials
GICS Industry Group	Financial Services	Financial Services
GICS Industry	Capital Markets	Capital Markets
GICS Sub-Industry	Financial Exchanges & Data	Investment Banking & Brokerage
Market Capitalization	87.19 billion USD	283.60 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	October 31, 1994	February 23, 1993
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

MCO

GSPC

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
Total Return (1Y)	5.02%	19.44%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	15.27%	40.69%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	6.21%	17.38%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

MCO

GSPC

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	28.61%	29.73%
Beta (5Y)	1.28	1.21
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-40.93%	-32.38%
Avg. Volume (3M)	817.57K	5.37M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

MCO and MS are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.03	0.51
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.04	0.73

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Moody's (MCO) at 76.74% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than Morgan Stanley (MS) at 18.04%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

76.74%

MCO: 76.74%
Max: 44.78%
Q3: 21.85%
Median: 12.91%
Q1: 4.48%
Min: -18.71%

MS

Financial Services industry group

18.04%

Max: 44.78%
Q3: 21.85%
MS: 18.04%
Median: 12.91%
Q1: 4.48%
Min: -18.71%

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their ROE against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Moody's (MCO) at 35.26% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Morgan Stanley (MS) at 25.63%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

35.26%

Max: 62.84%
MCO: 35.26%
Q3: 28.05%
Median: 15.36%
Q1: 4.82%
Min: -28.52%

MS

Financial Services industry group

25.63%

Max: 62.84%
Q3: 28.05%
MS: 25.63%
Median: 15.36%
Q1: 4.82%
Min: -28.52%

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their net margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Moody's (MCO) at 46.27% and Morgan Stanley (MS) at 39.00% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

46.27%

Max: 107.33%
Q3: 55.90%
MCO: 46.27%
Median: 30.09%
Q1: 14.60%
Min: -44.34%

MS

Financial Services industry group

39.00%

Max: 107.33%
Q3: 55.90%
MS: 39.00%
Median: 30.09%
Q1: 14.60%
Min: -44.34%

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their operating margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
ROE (TTM)	76.74%	18.04%
ROA (TTM)	15.56%	1.35%
Net Margin (TTM)	35.26%	25.63%
Operating Margin (TTM)	46.27%	39.00%
Gross Margin (TTM)	--	--

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Moody's (MCO) at 8.89% and Morgan Stanley (MS) at 14.48% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Moody's (MCO) at 21.40% and Morgan Stanley (MS) at 28.43% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
Revenue Growth (YoY)	8.89%	14.48%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	12.17%	9.52%
EPS Growth (YoY)	21.40%	28.43%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	22.48%	18.41%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Moody's (MCO) in Financial Services and Morgan Stanley (MS) in Financial Services both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Moody's (MCO) in Financial Services and Morgan Stanley (MS) in Financial Services run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
Current Ratio (MRQ)	--	--
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	--	--
Net Debt / EBITDA	--	--

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Moody's (MCO) at 0.78% and Morgan Stanley (MS) at 2.40% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

0.78%

Max: 9.77%
Q3: 3.92%
Median: 1.09%
MCO: 0.78%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

MS

Financial Services industry group

2.40%

Max: 9.77%
Q3: 3.92%
MS: 2.40%
Median: 1.09%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Moody's (MCO) at 24.59% and Morgan Stanley (MS) at 32.91% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

24.59%

Max: 241.07%
Q3: 97.36%
Median: 25.77%
MCO: 24.59%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

MS

Financial Services industry group

32.91%

Max: 241.07%
Q3: 97.36%
MS: 32.91%
Median: 25.77%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.78%	2.40%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	24.59%	32.91%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Morgan Stanley (MS) at 14.39 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Moody's (MCO) at 30.85 sits in the richer quartile — MCO needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

30.85

Max: 45.85
MCO: 30.85
Q3: 24.64
Median: 15.37
Q1: 9.68
Min: 0.16

MS

Financial Services industry group

14.39

Max: 45.85
Q3: 24.64
Median: 15.37
MS: 14.39
Q1: 9.68
Min: 0.16

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Morgan Stanley (MS) at 3.55 prices around its industry’s typical P/S ratio, while Moody's (MCO) at 10.66 clears its benchmark range — MCO looks notably rich on sales.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

10.66

MCO: 10.66
Max: 9.23
Q3: 4.57
Median: 2.72
Q1: 1.28
Min: -0.55

MS

Financial Services industry group

3.55

Max: 9.23
Q3: 4.57
MS: 3.55
Median: 2.72
Q1: 1.28
Min: -0.55

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Morgan Stanley (MS) at 2.65 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Moody's (MCO) at 26.68 prices above its benchmark range — MCO looks rich relative to book.

MCO

Financial Services industry group

26.68

MCO: 26.68
Max: 7.79
Q3: 3.63
Median: 1.57
Q1: 0.81
Min: -0.39

MS

Financial Services industry group

2.65

Max: 7.79
Q3: 3.63
MS: 2.65
Median: 1.57
Q1: 0.81
Min: -0.39

Moody's (MCO) vs. Morgan Stanley (MS): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Moody's (MCO) and Morgan Stanley (MS)
Metric	MCO	MS
P/E Ratio (TTM)	30.85	14.39
P/S Ratio (TTM)	10.66	3.55
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	26.68	2.65
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	--	--