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Compare Stocks › MS vs SYK

Morgan Stanley (MS) vs Stryker Corporation (SYK)

MS
Morgan Stanley
$158.55
VS
SYK
Stryker Corporation
$339.76

Rewards

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.
SYK
  • ★Gross margin of 65.0% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
  • ★Stryker Corporation scores 83/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with revenue predictability as the strongest competitive dimension.
  • ★Free cash flow has grown at a 28.1% CAGR over the past 4 years, demonstrating strong earnings power growth.

Risks

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.
SYK

    Key Valuation Metrics

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    MS
    SYK
    Valuation
    N/A
    Free Cash Flow
    $4.17B
    N/A
    FCF Yield
    3.21%
    15.53
    Trailing P/E
    40.50
    12.89
    Forward P/E
    20.30
    Quality & Moat
    3.43%
    ROIC
    13.93%
    14.42%
    ROE
    14.48%
    87.06%
    Gross Margin
    65.04%
    0.75
    PEG Ratio
    0.72
    Balance Sheet Safety
    4.56
    Debt / Equity
    0.73
    N/A
    Interest Coverage
    N/A
    N/A
    Net Debt / EBITDA
    1.76
    2.52%
    Dividend Yield
    1.04%
    MS: 4Ties: 3SYK: 2
    MSSYK

    Historical Fundamentals

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    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.

    SYK

    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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    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
    SYK
    $7.26
    created per $1 retained over 3 years
    Exceptional Value Creator
    Σ Retained
    $5.76B
    Δ Market Cap
    +$41.85B
    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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    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
    SYK
    71.4% Overvalued
    Price is 71.4% above estimated fair value
    Current Price: $339.76
    Fair Value: $198.26
    Strongly undervalued
    Undervalued
    Fairly valued
    Overvalued
    Strongly overvalued

    Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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    MS

    Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

    SYK

    What growth rate is the market pricing in at $340?

    +18.4%
    Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
    Standard FCF implies +15.0%

    The market implies +18.4% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

    Standard FCF implies a demanding +15.0%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

    Economic Moat Score

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    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.
    SYK
    83/100
    Wide Moat
    70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

    Wide moat driven primarily by revenue predictability. ROIC Consistency 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 5 years of fundamental data.

    Forensic Accounting

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    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.
    SYK
    -2.63
    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.

    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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    MS
    Insiders 24.0%Institutions 62.7%Retail & Other 13.3%
    No. of Institutional Holders3,182
    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.
    SYK
    Insiders 5.4%Institutions 82.3%Retail & Other 12.3%
    No. of Institutional Holders3,067
    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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    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
    SYK
    0
    Buys (3M)
    0
    Buys (12M)
    No open market insider purchases found.
    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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    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
    SYK
    1
    Sells (3M)
    6
    Sells (12M)
    Total value (12M): $2.33M
    PIERCE JAMES ANDREW
    Officer
    $175,215
    @ $368.87 · 2026-02-02
    WELLS PRESTON WENDELL
    Chief Financial Officer
    $60,370
    @ $365.88 · 2025-11-20
    BERRY WILLIAM E JR
    Officer
    $713,802
    @ $365.49 · 2025-11-14
    MENON VIJU S
    Officer
    $195,305
    @ $390.61 · 2025-08-25
    FLETCHER ROBERT S
    Officer
    $701,630
    @ $393.07 · 2025-08-20
    BERRY WILLIAM E JR
    Officer
    $482,202
    @ $388.56 · 2025-05-12
    GOLSTON ALLAN C
    Director
    $941,586
    @ $383.07 · 2025-02-18
    STILES SPENCER S
    Officer
    $201,056
    @ $391.16 · 2024-11-15
    LOBO KEVIN A
    Chief Executive Officer
    $21.13M
    @ $368.70 · 2024-11-07
    FINK MARY KATHRYN
    Officer
    $3.48M
    @ $367.65 · 2024-09-17
    MENON VIJU S
    Officer
    $213,000
    @ $355.00 · 2024-08-27
    BOEHNLEIN GLENN S
    Chief Financial Officer
    $6.66M
    @ $333.00 · 2024-08-02
    FLETCHER ROBERT S
    Officer
    $668,308
    @ $332.99 · 2024-05-22
    BOEHNLEIN GLENN S
    Chief Financial Officer
    $3.28M
    @ $327.65 · 2024-05-15
    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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    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.
    SYK
    FearGreed
    😨Fear(40/100)

    "Market is pessimistic — investigate whether fears are temporary or structural"

    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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    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)
    SYK
    ⚪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: Fear (40)
    View MS Full AnalysisView SYK Full Analysis