Cash flow remains highly sensitive to market-driven asset movements, evidenced by a $14.2 billion outflow in working capital during 2026Q1 following a $33.7 billion inflow in 2025Q4.
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Nov'08 | Nov'07 | Nov'06 | Nov'05 | Nov'04 | Nov'03 | Nov'02 | Nov'01 | Nov'00 | Nov'99 | Nov'98 | Nov'97 | Dec'96 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -1.01B | 49B | 1.36B | -33.54B | -6.4B | 33.97B | -25.23B | 40.77B | 7.3B | -4.5B | 2.45B | 3.67B | 1.13B | 35.01B | 24.76B | 15.38B | 40.61B | -45.95B | 73.42B | -22.09B | -60.8B | -31.35B | -24.51B | 2.35B | -5.05B | -24.09B | -2.38B | -29.27B | 15.37B | -588M | 2.21B |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 42.61% | 1.32% | -37.99% | -10.24% | 58.79% | -50.79% | 79.25% | 15.28% | -10.84% | 6.79% | 10.2% | 3.13% | 99.42% | 81.07% | 41.04% | 113.55% | -162.45% | 136.15% | -26.85% | -87.62% | -67.77% | -63.8% | 6.74% | -15.59% | -54.91% | -5.29% | -84.63% | 49.37% | -2.17% | 24.46% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 399.21% | 3497.5% | 104.06% | -424.25% | -118.83% | 234.64% | -161.88% | 458.15% | 262.15% | -284.1% | -33.4% | 224.85% | -96.77% | 41.4% | 60.96% | -62.13% | 188.39% | -162.59% | 432.31% | 63.66% | -93.94% | -27.94% | -1140.59% | 146.6% | 79.02% | -910.53% | 91.86% | -290.45% | 2713.78% | -126.63% | 49.54% |
| Net Income | 18.18B | 16.86B | 13.53B | 9.09B | 11.18B | 15.12B | 11.18B | 9.24B | 8.88B | 6.22B | 6.12B | 6.28B | 3.67B | 3.61B | 716M | 4.64B | 5.7B | 1.41B | 1.71B | 3.21B | 7.47B | 4.94B | 4.49B | 3.79B | 2.99B | 3.52B | 5.46B | 4.79B | 3.39B | 2.59B | 951.4M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 4.51B | 4.66B | 5.16B | 4.26B | 4B | 4.22B | 3.77B | 2.64B | 1.84B | 1.75B | 1.74B | 1.43B | 1.16B | 1.51B | 1.58B | 1.4B | 1.42B | 1.22B | 794M | 475M | 876M | 815M | 805M | 637M | 787M | 729M | 727M | 541M | 575M | 338M | 83.3M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 1.96B | 1.93B | 1.62B | 1.71B | 1.88B | 2.08B | 1.31B | 1.15B | 920M | 1.03B | 1.14B | 1.1B | 1.26B | 1.18B | 891M | 1.3B | 1.26B | 1.26B | 1.88B | 1.94B | 1.96B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | 561M | 561M | 152M | -463M | -849M | 4M | -250M | 165M | 449M | 2.75B | 1.58B | 1.19B | -231M | -117M | -639M | 413M | -129M | -932M | -1.22B | -2.05B | 212M | -1.08B | -195M | 205M | 55M | -427M | -219M | -160M | -55M | -77M | -83.4M |
| Other Non-Cash Items | -42.02B | 921M | 268M | 983M | 898M | -143M | 1.04B | -33M | 184M | 182M | 42M | 316M | -134M | -590M | 397M | 9.53B | 228M | -274M | -3.25B | 756M | 881M | -29.15B | 1.72B | -4.62B | 1.91B | 1.85B | -62.8B | -28.84B | 3.25B | -8.65B | 1.32B |
| Working Capital Changes | 15.69B | 24.07B | -19.37B | -49.11B | -23.5B | 12.69B | -42.28B | 27.61B | -4.97B | -16.43B | -8.17B | -6.65B | -4.59B | 29.41B | 21.81B | -1.91B | 32.13B | -48.64B | 73.51B | -26.43B | -72.2B | -6.88B | -31.32B | 2.35B | -10.79B | -29.77B | 54.45B | -5.61B | 8.21B | 5.22B | -62.3M |
| Change in Receivables | -15.5B | 0 | -5.31B | 602M | 14.66B | 774M | -29.77B | 233M | -728M | -9.31B | -2.88B | -434M | 3.61B | 6.77B | -10.2B | 1.52B | -9.57B | -2.44B | 54.53B | 1.79B | -38.42B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.84B | -31.62B | 14.74B | -20.93B | 19.49B | 3.64B | -37.63B | -40.85B | 39.28B | 16.66B | -24.7B | -14.38B | 46.69B | -6.33B | -56.46B | 29.76B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 31.74B | 0 | 0 | -3.63B | -4.9B | 7.76B | 10.19B | 19.94B | -13.06B | 2.01B | 1.8B | 4.37B | 27.97B | 26.7B | -1.28B | -6.96B | 761M | 818M | -114.5B | 71.06B | 33.6B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -48.34B | -144.22B | -29.46B | -3.08B | -11.63B | -49.9B | -37.9B | -33.56B | -22.88B | -12.39B | -19.51B | -20B | -35.32B | -24.46B | -12.63B | -10.73B | -29.16B | -4.47B | 729M | -11.44B | -2.35B | -4.12B | -3.1B | 1.76B | -5.66B | -887M | -2.69B | -6.65B | 3.19B | -2.53B | -2.8B |
| Capital Expenditures | -41M | -2.9B | -3.46B | -3.41B | -3.08B | -2.31B | -1.44B | -1.83B | -1.86B | -1.63B | -1.28B | -1.37B | -992M | -1.32B | -1.31B | -1.3B | -1.2B | -2.88B | -1.4B | -1.47B | 0 | -540M | -569M | -603M | -1.12B | -2B | -836M | -656M | 0 | -301M | 0 |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 0.03% | 2.52% | 3.36% | 3.86% | 4.93% | 3.99% | 2.91% | 3.55% | 3.9% | 3.92% | 3.54% | 3.81% | 2.74% | 3.74% | 4.3% | 3.48% | 3.36% | 10.17% | 2.6% | 1.79% | - | 1.17% | 1.48% | 1.73% | 3.47% | 4.55% | 1.85% | 1.9% | - | 1.11% | - |
| Acquisitions | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Investments | 986.49B | 980.75B | 700.7B | 689.86B | 665.41B | 682.58B | 630B | 493.77B | 452.15B | 396.1B | 386.3B | 357.5B | 351.71B | 345.96B | 361.38B | 456.22B | 500.72B | 454.15B | 413.61B | 518B | 589.45B | 461.84B | 631.75B | 509.83B | 416.84B | 406.67B | 356.25B | 307.19B | 265.76B | 255.61B | 34.58B |
| Other Investing | -46.35B | -42.48B | -24.1B | -4.98B | -24B | -36.94B | -18.75B | -953M | -298M | -251M | 200M | -15.92B | -20.33B | -9.92B | -3.7B | -8.83B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 525M | 361M | -3.26B | -1.77B | 2.37B | -4.53B | 1.29B | -1.65B | -6B | 3.19B | -2.23B | -2.8B |
| Cash from Financing | 91.17B | 98.31B | 46.76B | -2.73B | 22.71B | 41.55B | 83.78B | -11.97B | 24.2B | 16.26B | 7.36B | 24.36B | 23.14B | 2.63B | -11.9B | -5.15B | 4.16B | 3.02B | -18.54B | 38.52B | 54.34B | 32.08B | 30.72B | -3.64B | 13.32B | 32.76B | 11.56B | 31.37B | -9.94B | 5.99B | 1.13B |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -845M | -5.83B | -3.2B | -6.18B | -9.88B | -10.8B | -1.89B | -5.46B | -5.57B | -3.3B | -3.93B | -1.28B | 1.32B | 1B | -227M | -317M | 5.26B | -4.75B | 17.57B | -3.33B | -1.99B | -3.37B | -810M | -128M | -1.16B | -576M | -3.76B | -2.15B | -2.94B | -275M | -581.4M |
| Dividends Paid | -6.68B | -6.59B | -6.14B | -5.76B | -5.4B | -4.17B | -2.74B | -2.63B | -2.38B | -2.08B | -1.75B | -1.46B | -904M | -475M | -469M | -834M | -1.16B | -1.73B | -1.23B | -1.22B | -1.17B | -1.18B | -1.1B | -994M | -1B | -1.04B | -924M | -575M | -519M | -416M | -134M |
| Share Repurchases | -845M | -5.83B | -4.2B | -6.18B | -10.87B | -12.07B | -1.89B | -5.95B | -5.57B | -4.29B | -3.93B | -2.77B | -1.46B | -691M | -227M | -317M | -317M | -11B | -1.83B | -4.26B | -3.38B | -3.69B | -1.13B | -350M | -990M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | 82.17B | 39.28B | 27.96B | -4.4B | 430M | 36.37B | 78.17B | 2.37B | 26.87B | 2.05B | -14.74B | 22.66B | 18.97B | 23.63B | 8.95B | 1.06B | 1.19B | 6.44B | -2.66B | -6.62B | 32.71B | 22.77B | 2.83B | -918M | -7.04B | 21.99B | 13.69B | 23.17B | -14.8B | 5.36B | 1.02B |
| Net Change in Cash | 42.79B | 6.31B | 16.15B | -38.9B | 402M | 22.07B | 23.48B | -5.03B | 6.8B | 3.04B | -10.7B | 7.1B | -12.9B | 12.98B | -408M | -303M | 15.62B | -46.68B | 53.06B | 4.99B | -8.81B | -3.4B | 3.12B | 480M | 2.62B | 7.78B | 6.49B | -4.55B | 8.62B | 2.87B | 534.7M |
| Free Cash Flow | -1.05B | 46.1B | -2.1B | -36.95B | -9.47B | 31.66B | -26.68B | 38.95B | 5.44B | -6.13B | 1.17B | 2.3B | 139M | 34.24B | 23.24B | 5.38B | 39.11B | -48.83B | 72.02B | -23.56B | -60.8B | -31.89B | -25.07B | 1.75B | -6.18B | -26.09B | -3.22B | -29.93B | 15.37B | -889M | 2.21B |
| FCF Margin % | -0.88% | 40.09% | -2.04% | -41.85% | -15.17% | 54.8% | -53.7% | 75.7% | 11.38% | -14.76% | 3.25% | 6.39% | 0.38% | 97.23% | 76.08% | 14.36% | 109.33% | -172.62% | 133.55% | -28.64% | -87.62% | -68.94% | -65.28% | 5.02% | -19.06% | -59.46% | -7.14% | -86.53% | 49.37% | -3.28% | 24.46% |
| FCF Growth % | 96.53% | 2295.24% | 94.32% | -289.95% | -129.92% | 218.7% | -168.49% | 615.94% | 188.69% | -623.83% | -49.11% | 1555.4% | -99.59% | 47.34% | 331.9% | -86.24% | 180.09% | -167.8% | 405.65% | 61.25% | -90.65% | -27.19% | -1531.22% | 128.36% | 76.32% | -710.22% | 89.24% | -294.72% | 1828.8% | -140.26% | 49.54% |
| FCF per Share | -0.66 | 28.94 | -1.30 | -22.45 | -5.53 | 17.45 | -16.43 | 23.75 | 3.13 | -3.37 | 0.62 | 1.18 | 0.07 | 17.50 | 12.11 | 3.21 | 27.71 | -41.19 | 65.73 | -22.35 | -57.64 | -29.53 | -22.69 | 1.59 | -5.56 | -23.26 | -2.81 | -25.81 | 12.67 | -0.73 | 3.49 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -0.06x | 2.91x | 0.10x | -3.69x | -0.58x | 2.26x | -2.29x | 4.51x | 0.84x | -0.74x | 0.41x | 0.60x | 0.33x | 11.94x | 375.14x | 3.77x | 8.64x | -34.14x | 43.01x | -6.88x | -8.14x | -6.35x | -5.46x | 0.62x | -1.69x | -6.84x | -0.44x | -6.11x | 4.69x | -0.23x | 2.32x |
| Interest Paid | 1.73B | 0 | 46.36B | 41.94B | 9.82B | 1.3B | 4.12B | 12.51B | 9.98B | 5.38B | 2.83B | 2.67B | 3.58B | 4.79B | 5.21B | 6.83B | 5.89B | 7.61B | 35.59B | 59.95B | 39.67B | 23.41B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | -136M | 0 | 1.89B | 2.04B | 4.15B | 4.23B | 2.59B | 1.91B | 1.38B | 1.39B | 831M | 677M | 886M | 930M | 388M | 892M | 1.09B | 1.02B | 1.41B | 3.4B | 3.12B | 1.54B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Working Capital Volatility
As reported in financial statements, the OCF/NI ratio has fluctuated wildly, reaching a low of -11.70 in 2023Q4 and a high of 3.34 in 2025Q2, indicating that net income is a poor short-term proxy for the firm's actual cash generation capabilities.
The significant divergence between net income and operating cash flow suggests that accounting accruals and non-cash adjustments are heavily influenced by the firm's institutional trading activities. Investors should monitor whether this volatility is a structural feature of the firm's balance sheet management or a temporary byproduct of market-driven asset valuation changes.
Based on the provided data, FCF margins have swung from -88.5% in 2025Q1 to 42.0% in 2024Q4, demonstrating that Morgan Stanley's free cash flow trajectory is highly sensitive to quarterly shifts in working capital rather than consistent operational performance.
The erratic nature of FCF suggests that the firm's cash flow is not yet decoupled from the cyclicality of its capital markets business. This inconsistency warrants further investigation into whether the firm's cash management strategy is prioritizing liquidity buffers over predictable cash flow generation.
According to recent SEC filings, working capital changes have been the primary driver of cash flow variance, with a massive $33.7 billion inflow in 2025Q4 followed by a $14.2 billion outflow in 2026Q1, highlighting the extreme sensitivity of the firm's liquidity to market-driven asset movements.
These massive swings in working capital appear to reflect the firm's role as a market maker and the resulting fluctuations in collateral and trading positions. Such movements may obscure the underlying cash-generating efficiency of the wealth management segment, making it difficult to assess the firm's true operational cash health.
As reported in financial statements, Morgan Stanley has maintained a steady dividend payout of approximately $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion per quarter, even during periods of negative free cash flow, suggesting a strong management commitment to shareholder returns regardless of short-term cash volatility.
The firm's ability to sustain dividends and buybacks while experiencing significant quarterly cash outflows implies that management relies on its substantial cash position to bridge liquidity gaps. This strategy appears to prioritize shareholder confidence, though it may limit the firm's flexibility if market volatility persists for an extended duration.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying MS stock.
Morgan Stanley (MS) generated $49.00B in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Morgan Stanley (MS) generated $46.10B in free cash flow in 2025. Free cash flow is the cash left over after capital expenditures, which can be used to pay dividends, repurchase shares, or pay down debt.
Morgan Stanley (MS) spent $2.90B on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.
In 2025, Morgan Stanley (MS) returned $6.59B to shareholders via cash dividends and spent $5.83B on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.