Compare StocksMPWR vs MS

Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. (MPWR) vs Morgan Stanley (MS)

MPWR
Monolithic Power Systems, Inc.
$1092.69
VS
MS
Morgan Stanley
$158.55

Rewards

MPWR
  • Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. has maintained ROIC above 10% for 4 consecutive years, suggesting solid business economics.
  • Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. scores 76/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with reinvestment efficiency as the strongest competitive dimension.
  • Free cash flow has grown at a 52.3% CAGR over the past 4 years, demonstrating strong earnings power growth.
MS
  • Gross margin of 87.1% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
  • Each dollar of retained earnings has created $6.65 of market value — management is an exceptional capital allocator.
  • PEG ratio of 0.75 suggests the stock is undervalued relative to its growth rate — paying less than 1x for each unit of earnings growth.

Risks

MPWR
  • Buybacks have been poorly timed — 2 out of 3 years involved repurchases at relatively expensive valuations.
  • Despite buyback spending, shares outstanding increased in 2 out of 3 years — stock-based compensation is offsetting repurchases.
  • FCF yield of 1.2% is below 3%, meaning the market is pricing in substantial future growth to justify the current price.
MS
  • High leverage (4.56x debt/equity) combined with thin interest coverage (-1.0x) poses financial risk.
  • Altman Z-Score of 0.29 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
  • 7 insider sales totaling $25.2M with no purchases in the past 3 months — insiders are reducing their exposure.

Key Valuation Metrics

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MPWR
MS
Valuation
$663.26M
Free Cash Flow
N/A
1.24%
FCF Yield
N/A
84.77
Trailing P/E
15.53
42.28
Forward P/E
12.89
Quality & Moat
16.51%
ROIC
3.43%
17.45%
ROE
14.42%
55.18%
Gross Margin
87.06%
N/A
PEG Ratio
0.75
Balance Sheet Safety
0.01
Debt / Equity
4.56
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
-1.58
Net Debt / EBITDA
N/A
0.73%
Dividend Yield
2.52%
MPWR: 3Ties: 1MS: 4
MPWRMS

Historical Fundamentals

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MPWR

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

MS

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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MPWR
$14.25
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$1.93B
Δ Market Cap
+$27.49B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
MS
$6.65
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$20.84B
Δ Market Cap
+$138.59B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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MPWR
88.4% Overvalued
Price is 88.4% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $1092.69
Fair Value: $580.04
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
MS
45.5% Margin of Safety
Price is 45.5% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $158.55
Fair Value: $290.92
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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MPWR

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $1093?

+27.5%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +26.6%

The market implies +27.5% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +26.6%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

MS

Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

Economic Moat Score

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MPWR
76/100
Wide Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat driven primarily by reinvestment efficiency. Revenue Predictability is the area most vulnerable to competitive pressure.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.
MS
32/100
No Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

No durable moat detected, though revenue predictability shows some competitive positioning. The business lacks consistent evidence of sustainable advantages.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

Forensic Accounting

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MPWR
-2.51
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
MS
-2.09
Possible Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Ownership Breakdown

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MPWR
Insiders 4.0%Institutions 101.8%
No. of Institutional Holders1,517
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
MS
Insiders 24.0%Institutions 62.7%Retail & Other 13.3%
No. of Institutional Holders3,181
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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MPWR
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
MS
0
Buys (3M)
1
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $5,630
PETERSON DOUGLAS L
Director
$5,630
@ $156.39 · 2025-10-17
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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MPWR
13
Sells (3M)
41
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $543.29M
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$38.67M
@ $1171.83 · 2026-02-12
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$39.23M
@ $1188.92 · 2026-02-11
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$38.84M
@ $1142.28 · 2026-02-10
LEE VICTOR K
Director
$484,864
@ $1212.16 · 2026-02-09
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$26.79M
@ $1171.16 · 2026-02-06
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$25.44M
@ $1171.16 · 2026-02-06
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$64.32M
@ $1171.16 · 2026-02-06
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$26.79M
@ $1171.16 · 2026-02-06
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$26.79M
@ $1171.16 · 2026-02-06
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$3.39M
@ $1129.76 · 2026-02-02
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.82M
@ $940.47 · 2026-01-02
LEE VICTOR K
Director
$558,516
@ $930.86 · 2026-01-02
LEE VICTOR K
Director
$951,719
@ $951.72 · 2025-12-24
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.72M
@ $908.21 · 2025-12-01
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$18.53M
@ $926.47 · 2025-11-26
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$18.08M
@ $904.18 · 2025-11-25
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$89,697
@ $896.97 · 2025-11-25
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$3.56M
@ $895.23 · 2025-11-24
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$87,397
@ $873.97 · 2025-11-21
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$6.12M
@ $870.21 · 2025-11-19
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$24.66M
@ $881.66 · 2025-11-19
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$35.72M
@ $965.52 · 2025-11-12
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$38.34M
@ $958.39 · 2025-11-11
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$3.07M
@ $1024.43 · 2025-11-03
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$1.41M
@ $1087.62 · 2025-10-24
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$17.14M
@ $1017.77 · 2025-10-16
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.74M
@ $913.22 · 2025-10-01
MARTINEZ CARINTIA
Director
$1.26M
@ $900.00 · 2025-09-18
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$13.27M
@ $914.45 · 2025-09-18
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.44M
@ $814.34 · 2025-09-02
ELMIGER EUGEN J
Director
$3.39M
@ $846.71 · 2025-08-29
ZHOU JEFFREY
Director
$167,910
@ $870.00 · 2025-08-27
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$16.77M
@ $829.10 · 2025-08-15
ZHOU JEFFREY
Director
$340,000
@ $850.00 · 2025-08-13
ZHOU JEFFREY
Director
$166,000
@ $830.00 · 2025-08-12
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.25M
@ $750.00 · 2025-08-01
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$31.20M
@ $780.00 · 2025-08-01
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$4.50M
@ $750.00 · 2025-07-01
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$36,900
@ $738.00 · 2025-05-13
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$69,800
@ $698.00 · 2025-05-12
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$65,000
@ $650.00 · 2025-05-08
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$3.64M
@ $700.00 · 2025-02-18
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$474,721
@ $717.10 · 2025-02-10
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$381,498
@ $717.10 · 2025-02-10
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$1.86M
@ $717.10 · 2025-02-10
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$475,438
@ $717.10 · 2025-02-10
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$474,721
@ $717.10 · 2025-02-10
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$8.37M
@ $700.00 · 2025-02-07
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$2.55M
@ $700.00 · 2025-01-24
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$1.50M
@ $600.00 · 2024-12-09
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$561,620
@ $765.15 · 2024-11-08
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$662,611
@ $765.14 · 2024-11-08
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$2.15M
@ $765.15 · 2024-11-08
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$662,611
@ $765.14 · 2024-11-08
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$662,611
@ $765.14 · 2024-11-08
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$1.93M
@ $772.96 · 2024-11-01
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$10.23M
@ $929.59 · 2024-10-07
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.27M
@ $908.36 · 2024-10-01
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.26M
@ $904.20 · 2024-09-03
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$178,688
@ $893.44 · 2024-08-15
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$3.53M
@ $827.18 · 2024-08-09
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$566,668
@ $778.39 · 2024-08-08
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$668,637
@ $778.39 · 2024-08-08
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$2.17M
@ $778.39 · 2024-08-08
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$668,637
@ $778.39 · 2024-08-08
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$668,637
@ $778.39 · 2024-08-08
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.13M
@ $852.51 · 2024-08-01
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.15M
@ $831.58 · 2024-07-22
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$2.67M
@ $831.58 · 2024-07-22
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$7.99M
@ $831.58 · 2024-07-22
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$2.67M
@ $831.58 · 2024-07-22
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$2.67M
@ $831.58 · 2024-07-22
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$9.28M
@ $843.83 · 2024-07-08
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$1.53M
@ $824.65 · 2024-07-02
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$2.01M
@ $804.19 · 2024-07-01
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$2.15M
@ $804.57 · 2024-07-01
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$29.98M
@ $808.20 · 2024-07-01
LEE VICTOR K
Director
$820,460
@ $820.46 · 2024-06-28
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$1.83M
@ $731.77 · 2024-06-05
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$5.85M
@ $731.08 · 2024-06-03
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$1.00M
@ $769.40 · 2024-05-22
ZHOU JEFFREY
Director
$150,000
@ $750.00 · 2024-05-20
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$150,000
@ $750.00 · 2024-05-20
CHANG KUO WEI HERBERT
Director
$147,000
@ $735.00 · 2024-05-15
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$599,610
@ $690.00 · 2024-05-08
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$508,515
@ $689.98 · 2024-05-08
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$1.95M
@ $690.00 · 2024-05-08
TSENG SARIA H
General Counsel
$599,627
@ $690.02 · 2024-05-08
XIAO DEMING
Officer
$599,627
@ $690.02 · 2024-05-08
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$1.66M
@ $663.29 · 2024-05-01
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$5.29M
@ $661.86 · 2024-05-01
SCIAMMAS MAURICE
Officer
$7.50M
@ $681.83 · 2024-04-08
BLEGEN THEODORE
Chief Financial Officer
$1.69M
@ $677.40 · 2024-04-01
HSING MICHAEL R
Chief Executive Officer
$5.42M
@ $677.44 · 2024-04-01
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
MS
7
Sells (3M)
16
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $62.45M
SIMKOWITZ DANIEL A
President
$6.02M
@ $182.61 · 2026-01-30
GROSSMAN ERIC F
Officer
$3.97M
@ $184.00 · 2026-01-20
CRAWLEY MANDELL L.
Officer
$1.44M
@ $183.45 · 2026-01-20
YESHAYA SHARON
Chief Financial Officer
$2.94M
@ $185.77 · 2026-01-20
SMITH CHARLES AUBREY III
Officer
$1.55M
@ $182.08 · 2026-01-20
PIZZI MICHAEL A
Officer
$3.69M
@ $184.55 · 2026-01-20
SAPERSTEIN ANDREW MICHAEL
President
$5.57M
@ $183.62 · 2026-01-20
PICK EDWARD N.
Chief Executive Officer
$16.43M
@ $164.34 · 2025-10-31
GROSSMAN ERIC F
Officer
$1.69M
@ $141.12 · 2025-07-17
SIMKOWITZ DANIEL A
President
$4.09M
@ $141.13 · 2025-07-17
SMITH CHARLES AUBREY III
Officer
$2.81M
@ $140.30 · 2025-07-17
PIZZI MICHAEL A
Officer
$2.53M
@ $140.62 · 2025-07-17
SIMKOWITZ DANIEL A
President
$3.70M
@ $127.37 · 2025-05-12
HERZ ROBERT H
Director
$95,459
@ $119.32 · 2025-05-02
SAPERSTEIN ANDREW MICHAEL
President
$4.80M
@ $120.00 · 2025-05-02
GROSSMAN ERIC F
Officer
$1.12M
@ $111.65 · 2025-04-15
CRAWLEY MANDELL L.
Officer
$1.15M
@ $138.06 · 2025-01-22
GROSSMAN ERIC F
Officer
$1.78M
@ $136.20 · 2025-01-21
SIMKOWITZ DANIEL A
President
$5.00M
@ $136.61 · 2025-01-21
AKRAM RAJA
Chief Financial Officer
$2.38M
@ $136.01 · 2025-01-21
PIZZI MICHAEL A
Officer
$2.52M
@ $136.92 · 2025-01-21
SAPERSTEIN ANDREW MICHAEL
President
$4.20M
@ $136.43 · 2025-01-21
CRAWLEY MANDELL L.
Officer
$368,375
@ $105.25 · 2024-07-26
AKRAM RAJA
Officer
$797,764
@ $106.37 · 2024-07-18
SIMKOWITZ DANIEL A
President
$4.26M
@ $106.54 · 2024-07-17
HERZ ROBERT H
Director
$106,621
@ $106.62 · 2024-07-17
CRAWLEY MANDELL L.
Officer
$692,663
@ $99.61 · 2024-05-14
GORMAN JAMES P
Officer and Director
$9.02M
@ $90.21 · 2024-04-18
SMITH CHARLES AUBREY III
Officer
$1.01M
@ $90.09 · 2024-04-17
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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MPWR
FearGreed
😐Neutral(52/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
MS
FearGreed
😐Neutral(48/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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MPWR
Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (52)
MS
Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (48)
View MPWR Full AnalysisView MS Full Analysis