How does MS's 2024 performance compare to peers?

**Morgan Stanley's 2024 performance shows resilience amid a challenging environment, outperforming some peers but facing pressures similar to the industry**: 1. **Relative Strength**: Morgan Stanley's stock achieved a yearly percentage change of 34.82%, which is notable considering the sector's volatility. This contrasts with Arm Holdings' significant surge of 64.16%, while Cadence Design showed more modest growth of 10.31%. Synopsys, despite being underperforming with a decline of 5.74%, remains an important player in the sector. |code|Ticker|Name|Date|Percentage Change|market_code| |---|---|---|---|---|---| |CDNS|CDNS.O|Cadence Design|20240102|-3.4769|185| |MS|MS.N|Morgan Stanley|20240102|0.6971|169| |NCLH|NCLH.N|Norwegian Cruise|20240102|-8.5828|169| |ARM|ARM.O|Arm Holdings|20240102|-8.284|185| |SNPS|SNPS.O|Synopsys|20240102|-3.0957|185| |CDNS|CDNS.O|Cadence Design|20240103|-2.1377|185| |MS|MS.N|Morgan Stanley|20240103|-2.1193|169| |NCLH|NCLH.N|Norwegian Cruise|20240103|-5.4585|169| |ARM|ARM.O|Arm Holdings|20240103|-1.4655|185| |SNPS|SNPS.O|Synopsys|20240103|-1.3167|185| 2. **Sector Context**: The semiconductor design and IP sector has faced headwinds, including concerns about AI-related spending, uncertain demand from China, and weak foundry adoption outside of TSMC. Despite these challenges, Morgan Stanley's performance indicates a degree of resilience and operational effectiveness. 3. **Peer Comparison**: Compared to peers like Arm, which has faced litigation risks and uncertain demand, Morgan Stanley's performance reflects better stability. Similarly, while Norwegian Cruise Line faced significant stock underperformance, Morgan Stanley's financial leverage and institutional strength provided a buffer against the sector's challenges. 4. **Future Outlook**: Looking ahead, Morgan Stanley remains optimistic about growth, citing improving China demand, AI sentiment recovery, and a better macroeconomic backdrop as potential upside drivers. This outlook is consistent with the expected growth in the EDA market beyond 2025. In conclusion, Morgan Stanley's 2024 performance is robust within the context of the semiconductor design and IP sector, outshining some peers while facing common industry challenges. Its strong institutional fundamentals and strategic positioning offer a positive outlook for the future.