CGNT vs NIQ vs MSTR Stock Comparison

Cognyte Software, NIQ Global Intelligence and Strategy Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CGNT Cognyte Software Ltd.
$9.76 +11.8% 1M +17.9% 1Y
Market cap
$728.01M
P/E
208.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$421.71M
Div. yield
–
Analytics and BI Technology
4 wins
MSTR Strategy Inc
$146.01 -10.0% 1M -48.8% 1Y
Market cap
$49.33B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$498.35M
Div. yield
–
Analytics and BI Technology
3 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Cognyte Software leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Cognyte Software 4, Strategy 3, NIQ Global Intelligence 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCGNTNIQMSTRLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $728.01M $5.87B $49.33B MSTR
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 208.7x -22.2x -1.6x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.3x 18.1x — NIQ
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +12.0% +7.5% +7.8% CGNT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 0.8% -6.1% -6,294.3% CGNT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 2.8% -73.9% NIQ
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 4.0x -0.1x MSTR
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +17.9% +46.0% -48.8% NIQ
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -15.3%/yr — +15.2%/yr MSTR
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 52.1% 67.3% 81.1% CGNT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 57/100 54/100 21/100 CGNT

Percentile Scorecard

CGNTNIQMSTR

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

AxisCGNTNIQMSTR
Valuation 59 #42 of 101 71 #30 of 101 8 #93 of 101
Growth 89 #12 of 97 74 #26 of 97 7 #90 of 97
Profitability 61 #37 of 94 46 #51 of 94 8 #87 of 94
Financial Health 60 #44 of 109 25 #82 of 109 80 #23 of 109
Shareholder Returns 14 #55 of 64 – 3 #62 of 64
Overall 57 54 21
  • CGNT ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications
  • NIQ ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications
  • MSTR ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCGNTNIQMSTRSPY
1 month +11.8%+13.2%-10.0% -1.0%
3 months +17.4%+86.4%+59.3% +2.9%
6 months +1.8%+73.5%-14.6% +6.4%
Year to date +3.8%+21.5%-3.9% +11.4%
1 year +17.9%+46.0%-48.8% +13.1%
3 years +109.4%—+243.6% +79.4%
3 years, per year +28.0%—+50.9% +21.5%
5 years -56.3%—+103.2% +67.7%
5 years, per year -15.3%—+15.2% +10.9%
10 years ——+766.0% +255.2%
10 years, per year ——+24.1% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureCGNTNIQMSTRSPY
Volatility, 1Y 52.1%67.3%81.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 56.6%63.1%74.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.300.453.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.340.68-0.60 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -89.3%-59.6%-84.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -20.3%0.0%-50.6% -2.5%
52-week high $12.24$20.04$295.63 $779.14
52-week low $6.34$7.97$82.31 $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.

MultipleCGNTNIQMSTR
P/E now vs peer median 204.0xmedian 29.9x -22.4xmedian 29.9x -1.6xmedian 29.9x
P/S now vs peer median 1.7xmedian 2.8x 1.4xmedian 2.8x 103.1xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 20.8xmedian 17.4x 11.4xmedian 17.4x -1.5xmedian 17.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 24.6xmedian 16.9x —median 16.9x -1,962xmedian 16.9x
P/B now vs peer median 3.2xmedian 3.1x 5.2xmedian 3.1x 1.7xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 7.57median 0.86 —median 0.86 0.01median 0.86

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 monthsCGNTNIQMSTR
Revenue $421.71M $4.36B $498.35M
Gross profit $307.70M $2.43B $336.89M
Operating income $17.43M $135.00M -$36.36B
Net income $4.85M -$264.00M -$30.41B
Free cash flow $28.96M – -$26.19M
R&D $127.59M – $93.13M
EPS (diluted) $0.05 $-0.89 $-88.98
Cash & equivalents $102.17M $416.60M $1.71B
Total debt – $3.55B $6.71B
Shares (diluted) 72.91M 295.06M 352.53M
Enterprise value $293.19M $4.23B $42.32B

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
MetricCGNTNIQMSTR
P/E 204.0x -22.4x -1.6x
P/FCF 24.6x – -1,962x
P/Operating cash flow 17.2x – -2,558x
P/S 1.7x 1.4x 103.1x
P/B 3.2x 5.2x 1.7x
P/Tangible book 3.3x -6.8x -2.7x
EV/EBITDA 20.8x 11.4x -1.5x
EV/EBIT 35.1x 67.0x -1.5x
EV/Revenue 1.4x 2.1x 111.7x
EV/FCF 21.1x – -2,125x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.8x – -2,770x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 7.57 – 0.01

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCGNTNIQMSTR
Revenue growth (1Y) 12.0% 7.5% 7.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 12.7% – -0.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 15.3% 6.6% 4.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 17.1% – -5.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) 406.0% 577.0% -645.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 31.9% – -437.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 202.7% 55.3% -734.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 27.4% – -430.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 201.4% 62.2% -676.7%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 26.9% – -314.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 56.8% – 79.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 38.0% – -202.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 53.0% – 74.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 66.3% – -109.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCGNTNIQMSTR
Gross margin 73.0% 55.7% 67.6%
EBITDA margin 7.0% 18.2% -7,284%
Operating margin 4.1% 3.1% -7,295%
Pretax margin 3.1% -2.4% -7,280%
Net margin 0.8% -6.1% -6,294%
FCF margin 6.9% – -5.3%
Operating cash flow margin 9.8% – -4.0%
Return on equity 2.2% -21.5% -90.1%
Return on assets 0.9% -3.8% -56.9%
Return on invested capital – 2.8% -73.9%
Return on capital employed 5.9% 2.6% -68.7%
Asset turnover 0.8x 0.6x 0.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 8.5x – 0.0x
Stock comp / revenue 5.3% – 10.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCGNTNIQMSTR
Debt / assets – 52.5% 12.8%
Debt / equity – 3.1x 0.2x
Net debt / EBITDA – 4.0x -0.1x
Debt / FCF – – -256.2x
Liabilities / assets 56.6% 83.0% 41.2%
Equity / assets 43.4% 17.0% 58.8%
Interest coverage 113.9x – –
Current ratio 1.3x 1.1x 5.4x
Quick ratio 0.5x 1.0x 5.2x
Cash ratio 0.5x 0.3x 4.9x
Altman Z-score 2.18 0.88 -1.21

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCGNTNIQMSTR
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield -2.8% – -51.6%
Shareholder yield -2.8% 0.0% -51.6%
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.

ConsensusCGNTNIQMSTR
Forward P/E 20.3xFY2026 18.1xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $0.48FY2026 $1.11FY2026 $-20.12FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +71.4%FY2026 +382.6%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +68.8% +19.8% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $426.78MFY2026 $4.21BFY2026 $466.60MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +6.7%FY2026 +0.2%FY2026 -2.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +18.3% +18.6% +14.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCGNTNIQMSTR
Held by institutions 67.2% 84.4% 57.9%
Institutions holding 133 162 867
Change in shares held, QoQ -2.8% +4.0% +12.5%
Institutions buying 75 101 501
Institutions selling 33 51 256
Buyers to sellers 2.27 1.98 1.96

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.

CGNTNIQMSTR
CGNT 1.00 0.23 0.34
NIQ 0.23 1.00 0.04
MSTR 0.34 0.04 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CGNT, NIQ and MSTR?

Strategy (MSTR) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cognyte Software (CGNT) $728.01M, NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) $5.87B, Strategy (MSTR) $49.33B.

Which company is growing faster?

Cognyte Software (CGNT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cognyte Software (CGNT) +12.0%, NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) +7.5%, Strategy (MSTR) +7.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Cognyte Software (CGNT) has the highest net margin (Cognyte Software (CGNT) 0.8%, NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) -6.1%, Strategy (MSTR) -6,294.3%). On return on invested capital, NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) leads (NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) 2.8%, Strategy (MSTR) -73.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) returned the most: Cognyte Software (CGNT) +17.9%, NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) +46.0%, Strategy (MSTR) -48.8%. Over five years, Strategy (MSTR) compounded fastest (Cognyte Software (CGNT) -15.3%/yr, Strategy (MSTR) +15.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cognyte Software (CGNT) has been the steadiest (Cognyte Software (CGNT) 52.1%, NIQ Global Intelligence (NIQ) 67.3%, Strategy (MSTR) 81.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CGNT, NIQ and MSTR?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cognyte Software (CGNT) leads on 4. 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.