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The Charles Schwab vs Stifel Financial: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

The Charles Schwab holds the cleaner structural position, with profitability as the main driver and stability adding further support. Stifel Financial still has the edge on growth, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. The market setup is broadly comparable for both — no clear directional signal from price behavior. The market is not adding a decisive signal either way — the structural read carries the weight.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Both peer scores are relative to the Russell 1000 universe, making them directly comparable.

Updated 2026-08-16

The comparison is mainly decided in profitability, with the rest of the profile carrying less weight. The Charles Schwab Corporation leads by 25 points on the overall comparison score.

INDUSTRY COMPARISON

Both operate in: Capital Markets

This comparison is based on industry proximity, not on functional trajectory similarity. SCHW and SF share the same industry classification.

For a similarity-based comparison, see how The Charles Schwab and Stifel Financial each position within their functional peer groups in AssetNext.

Peer-Relative Score
SCHW
The Charles Schwab Corporation
72
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: Russell 1000
vs
SF
Stifel Financial Corp.
47
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: Russell 1000

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

The largest gaps do not all point in the same direction.

Dimension spread: SCHW vs SF Profitability 100 11 Stability 51 36 Valuation 68 75 Growth 58 69 SCHW SF
Gap Ranking
#1 Profitability +89
#2 Stability +15
#3 Growth +11
#4 Valuation +7
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for SCHW and SF Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer SCHWSF Relative valuation Structural strength

Structure clearly favours The Charles Schwab Corporation, even though current pricing leans the other way.

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Entry today — historical context

Where SCHW and SF each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY SCHW Elevated · near norm 0th 50th 100th 0 pct gap SF Elevated · above norm 0th 50th 100th 99th 98th
SCHW (99th percentile) and SF (98th percentile) both sit in the upper portion of their own 5-year ranges. The historical entry context is broadly similar for both. This reflects entry timing, not which company is structurally stronger.

Describes historical entry positioning only. Descriptive — not investment advice.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Profitability
The Charles Schwab Corporation ranks near the top of the group on profitability; Stifel Financial Corp. sits in the weaker half.
Stability
On stability, The Charles Schwab Corporation is positioned higher in the group, while Stifel Financial Corp. is closer to the middle.
Profitability — Dominant Gap
SCHW
100
SF
11
Gap+89in favour of SCHW

The profitability lead is mainly driven by a 31-point operating margin advantage.

What else supports the lead

The Charles Schwab Corporation also looks less cycle-sensitive, which gives the profile a calmer footing than a pure score split would imply.

What this means for the comparison

Profitability is the clearest driver of the lead, with stability adding further support — though growth still provides a real counterweight.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the SCHW vs SF comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

Explore full breakdown →
Similar profitability-driven comparisons

Explore how SCHW and SF each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.