MS vs SNEX: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. MS and SNEX share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined MS and SNEX exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm founded in 1935 and headquartered in New York City, with offices in 42 countries and more than 80,000 employees. It operates through three segments: Institutional Securities (investment banking, equity and fixed-income trading, prime brokerage, and research), Wealth Management (financial-advisor-led brokerage, investment advisory, lending, and banking services for individuals and families), and Investment Management (equity, fixed income, alternatives, and liquidity strategies for institutions and intermediaries). The firm earns revenue through advisory and underwriting fees, trading gains, and, increasingly, recurring asset-based fees tied to the value of client assets across its wealth and investment management platforms. The current Morgan Stanley took its modern shape through the 1997 merger with Dean Witter Discover and a string of subsequent acquisitions, most notably E*TRADE (2020) and Eaton Vance (2021), which dramatically expanded its self-directed brokerage and asset management capabilities. Ted Pick became Chairman and CEO at the start of 2024, succeeding James Gorman, who had led the firm since 2010 and orchestrated its transformation toward fee-based businesses. Under Pick, the integrated-firm strategy emphasizes cross-selling across all three segments and driving client assets toward fee-based relationships to generate more predictable earnings.

Full MS guide

StoneX Group Inc. is a New York-headquartered financial-services firm that acts as a middleman between clients and the world's financial and commodity markets. It serves more than 54,000 commercial, institutional, and global-payments clients plus over 400,000 retail accounts across roughly 80 offices on five continents, organizing its work into four segments: Commercial (agricultural, energy, and metals hedging), Institutional (securities, futures, FX, and prime services), Retail (self-directed trading brands), and Global Payments (cross-border money movement into hard-to-reach currencies). Because much of what StoneX does is regulated brokerage, clearing, and market-making, the company operates as a holding company over many licensed subsidiaries. A defining recent move was the roughly $900 million acquisition of futures broker R.J. O'Brien, which closed on July 31, 2025 and made StoneX the largest non-bank futures commission merchant in the United States, adding tens of thousands of clients and billions in client float.

Full SNEX guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• MS drivers: Wealth management as a recurring-revenue engine; Capital-markets cycle recovery.
• SNEX drivers: Scale from the R.J. O'Brien deal; Interest income on client float.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: A simultaneous downturn in asset prices and capital-markets activity would pressure both the fee-based wealth revenues and the transaction-dependent Institutional Securities segment at the same time, which is the scenario that most concerns long-term holders. For SNEX, stoneX operates in a low-margin, capital-intensive, and highly regulated industry where a single operational, credit, or compliance failure at any of its many subsidiaries can be costly.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick MS if you believe its drivers more; SNEX if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the MS and SNEX guides.

MS. Morgan Stanley's trailing P/E of roughly 19 to 20 times sits modestly above its own 5-year historical average of around 14 to 15 times, reflecting the market's recognition of the firm's successful shift toward more durable, fee-based earnings. The ROTCE of 21.6% for full-year 2025 demonstrates that the integrated-firm model is generating returns well above most peers' cost of equity, though sustaining that level depends on continued strength in both capital markets and wealth inflows. At a forward P/E of approximately 17.6 times, the stock is not priced as a deep-value name, meaning expectations for continued earnings growth are already embedded in the current price.

SNEX. StoneX posted record fiscal 2025 results, with operating revenues around $4.1 billion and net income near $306 million on diluted EPS of about $5.89. Note the revenue distinction: as a commodities and financial intermediary the firm also reports tens of billions in gross transactional revenue that is largely pass-through cost, so operating and net operating revenues are the more meaningful figures. At roughly $100 to $110 per share the stock trades around 20 times earnings, a valuation in line with a profitable, cyclical financials name.

Headline figures (approximate, 2026-06-27): MS shows revenue (full year 2025) ~$70.6 billion, net income (full year 2025) ~$13.4 billion (approx., based on ~$10.21 EPS on ~1.58B diluted shares), eps (ttm) ~$11.04, p/e ratio (ttm) ~19-20x; SNEX shows operating revenues (fy2025) ~$4.1B (up ~20%), net operating revenues (fy2025) ~$2.05B, net income (fy2025) ~$306M (up ~17%), diluted eps (fy2025) ~$5.89.

MS and SNEX are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined MS and SNEX exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.