CALX vs CIEN vs NOW Stock Comparison

Calix, Ciena and ServiceNow Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CALX Calix, Inc
$36.19 +4.0% 1M -47.1% 1Y
Market cap
$2.28B
P/E
44.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.11B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
4 wins
CIEN Ciena Corp
$284.22 -27.4% 1M +49.7% 1Y
Market cap
$40.33B
P/E
61.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.02B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
6 wins
NOW ServiceNow, Inc.
$106.02 -21.1% 1M -42.3% 1Y
Market cap
$110.05B
P/E
75.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$15.43B
Div. yield
–
Business Process Automation Technology
1 win

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Ciena leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Ciena 6, Calix 4, ServiceNow 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCALXCIENNOWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $2.28B $40.33B $110.05B NOW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 44.9x 61.7x 75.9x CALX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.3x 37.4x 27.5x CALX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +27.8% +32.6% +21.8% CIEN
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 4.6% 10.9% 9.4% CIEN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 12.4% 5.2% CIEN
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 0.7x 0.8x CIEN
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -47.1% +49.7% -42.3% CIEN
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -13.0%/yr +36.4%/yr -5.1%/yr CIEN
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.8% 79.6% 66.8% CALX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 75/100 54/100 52/100 CALX

Percentile Scorecard

CALXCIENNOW

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCALXCIENNOW
Valuation 59 #47 of 112 20 #90 of 112 40 #60 of 100
Growth 82 #20 of 108 94 #7 of 108 47 #52 of 97
Profitability 64 #38 of 104 84 #18 of 104 77 #22 of 94
Financial Health 75 #30 of 116 41 #69 of 116 54 #52 of 111
Shareholder Returns 98 #3 of 80 33 #54 of 80 40 #39 of 64
Overall 75 54 52
  • CALX ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • CIEN ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • NOW ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCALXCIENNOWSPY
1 month +4.0%-27.4%-21.1% -2.3%
3 months -3.2%-27.3%-7.2% -0.7%
6 months -16.7%-47.2%+15.3% +4.8%
Year to date -31.6%+21.5%-30.8% +10.3%
1 year -47.1%+49.7%-42.3% +10.3%
3 years +1.7%+547.4%-12.6% +73.0%
3 years, per year +0.6%+86.5%-4.4% +20.1%
5 years -50.0%+372.1%-22.9% +61.9%
5 years, per year -13.0%+36.4%-5.1% +10.1%
10 years +444.2%+1,369.6%+526.6% +258.6%
10 years, per year +18.5%+30.8%+20.1% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCALXCIENNOWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.8%79.6%66.8% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 44.0%85.5%76.4% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.982.900.74 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -1.160.62-0.63 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -65.3%-54.7%-64.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -46.2%-54.7%-42.0% -3.5%
52-week high $67.24$627.00$182.77 $779.14
52-week low $33.15$176.45$83.00 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCALXCIENNOW
P/E now vs peer median 44.9xmedian 29.9x 61.7xmedian 29.9x 75.9xmedian 28.5x
P/S now vs peer median 2.1xmedian 2.8x 6.7xmedian 2.8x 7.1xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 26.3xmedian 18.5x 45.6xmedian 18.5x 32.8xmedian 16.8x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.7xmedian 28.0x 49.5xmedian 28.0x 23.2xmedian 16.2x
P/B now vs peer median 3.2xmedian 2.8x 13.2xmedian 2.8x 8.4xmedian 2.9x
PEG now vs peer median 6.35median 1.00 1.38median 1.00 -22.22median 0.90

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCALXCIENNOW
Revenue $1.11B $6.02B $15.43B
Gross profit $628.73M $2.65B $11.28B
Operating income $61.25M $738.95M $1.49B
Net income $51.19M $654.41M $1.45B
Free cash flow $85.42M $814.36M $4.75B
R&D $207.99M $924.94M $3.47B
EPS (diluted) $0.78 $4.48 $1.39
Cash & equivalents $68.91M $2.45B $2.39B
Total debt – $3.23B $7.52B
Shares (diluted) 65.51M 145.97M 1.04B
Enterprise value $1.11B $33.89B $89.31B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCALXCIENNOW
P/E 44.9x 61.7x 75.9x
P/FCF 26.7x 49.5x 23.2x
P/Operating cash flow 20.8x 38.2x 20.6x
P/S 2.1x 6.7x 7.1x
P/B 3.2x 13.2x 8.4x
P/Tangible book 3.2x 14.1x 11.6x
EV/EBITDA 26.3x 45.6x 32.8x
EV/EBIT 34.0x 55.4x 75.7x
EV/Revenue 1.9x 6.8x 7.3x
EV/FCF 24.4x 50.3x 23.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.0x 38.8x 21.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 6.35 1.38 -22.22

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCALXCIENNOW
Revenue growth (1Y) 27.8% 32.6% 21.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.9% 12.5% 22.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 30.3% 40.6% 14.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 13.3% 19.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 273.3% 200.1% -14.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 3.8% 29.1% 32.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 290.5% 364.5% -16.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 4.9% 43.5% -3.1%
EPS growth (1Y) 287.6% 359.9% -16.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 7.1% 44.8% -3.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 24.5% 34.5% 10.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 41.8% 201.2% 21.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 19.4% 34.5% 20.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 62.0% 95.4% 25.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCALXCIENNOW
Gross margin 56.6% 44.1% 73.1%
EBITDA margin 7.1% 14.9% 22.3%
Operating margin 5.5% 12.3% 9.7%
Pretax margin 6.5% 12.1% 13.1%
Net margin 4.6% 10.9% 9.4%
FCF margin 7.7% 13.5% 30.8%
Operating cash flow margin 9.9% 17.5% 34.6%
Return on equity 7.1% 22.0% 11.3%
Return on assets 5.4% 9.3% 4.6%
Return on invested capital – 12.4% 5.2%
Return on capital employed 8.2% 13.1% 7.5%
Asset turnover 1.2x 0.9x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.1x 1.6x 3.7x
Stock comp / revenue 7.2% 3.5% 10.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCALXCIENNOW
Debt / assets – 40.4% 23.6%
Debt / equity – 1.1x 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA – 0.7x 0.8x
Debt / FCF – 4.0x 1.6x
Liabilities / assets 25.6% 61.8% 58.9%
Equity / assets 74.4% 38.2% 41.1%
Interest coverage – 10.6x 14.6x
Current ratio 2.8x 3.8x 0.7x
Quick ratio 1.6x 2.8x 0.6x
Cash ratio 0.9x 1.9x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 6.95 6.09 4.32

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCALXCIENNOW
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield 8.4% -1.2% 2.4%
Shareholder yield 8.4% -1.2% 2.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCALXCIENNOW
Forward P/E 22.3xFY2026 37.4xFY2026 27.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $1.62FY2026 $7.60FY2026 $3.85FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +20.9%FY2026 +187.9%FY2026 +9.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +48.1% +64.7% +27.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.11BFY2026 $6.86BFY2026 $15.25BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +11.0%FY2026 +43.8%FY2026 +14.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +18.8% +18.0% +17.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCALXCIENNOW
Held by institutions 94.5% 92.9% 81.6%
Institutions holding 290 1,222 2,226
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.5% -1.7% -2.1%
Institutions buying 148 731 1,286
Institutions selling 111 379 780
Buyers to sellers 1.33 1.93 1.65

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CALXCIENNOW
CALX 1.00 0.25 0.14
CIEN 0.25 1.00 -0.15
NOW 0.14 -0.15 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CALX, CIEN and NOW?

ServiceNow (NOW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Calix (CALX) $2.28B, Ciena (CIEN) $40.33B, ServiceNow (NOW) $110.05B.

Which stock is cheaper, CALX, CIEN and NOW?

Calix (CALX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Calix (CALX) 44.9x, Ciena (CIEN) 61.7x, ServiceNow (NOW) 75.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Calix (CALX) is cheapest (Calix (CALX) 22.3x, Ciena (CIEN) 37.4x, ServiceNow (NOW) 27.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Ciena (CIEN) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Calix (CALX) +27.8%, Ciena (CIEN) +32.6%, ServiceNow (NOW) +21.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Ciena (CIEN) has the highest net margin (Calix (CALX) 4.6%, Ciena (CIEN) 10.9%, ServiceNow (NOW) 9.4%). On return on invested capital, Ciena (CIEN) leads (Ciena (CIEN) 12.4%, ServiceNow (NOW) 5.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ciena (CIEN) returned the most: Calix (CALX) -47.1%, Ciena (CIEN) +49.7%, ServiceNow (NOW) -42.3%. Over five years, Ciena (CIEN) compounded fastest (Calix (CALX) -13.0%/yr, Ciena (CIEN) +36.4%/yr, ServiceNow (NOW) -5.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Calix (CALX) has been the steadiest (Calix (CALX) 40.8%, Ciena (CIEN) 79.6%, ServiceNow (NOW) 66.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CALX, CIEN and NOW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Ciena (CIEN) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.