CIEN vs RBBN vs CSCO Stock Comparison

Ciena, Ribbon Communications and Cisco Systems Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CIEN Ciena Corp
$349.15 -1.6% 1M +84.5% 1Y
Market cap
$49.54B
P/E
75.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.02B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
5 wins
CSCO Cisco Systems, Inc.
$108.59 +1.5% 1M +52.2% 1Y
Market cap
$428.50B
P/E
32.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$63.33B
Div. yield
1.54%
Networking Equipment Technology
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Cisco Systems leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Cisco Systems 5, Ciena 5, Ribbon Communications 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCIENRBBNCSCOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $49.54B $291.65M $428.50B CSCO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 75.8x 15.7x 32.4x RBBN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 45.9x 32.6x 22.9x CSCO
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +32.6% -7.8% +11.8% CIEN
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 10.9% 2.3% 21.0% CSCO
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 12.4% 0.0% 15.9% CSCO
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 9.4x 0.8x CIEN
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — 1.54% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +84.5% -52.8% +52.2% CIEN
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +45.1%/yr -21.5%/yr +14.2%/yr CIEN
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 77.9% 69.3% 35.5% CSCO
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 55/100 41/100 55/100 CIEN

Percentile Scorecard

CIENRBBNCSCO

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

AxisCIENRBBNCSCO
Valuation 21 #89 of 112 62 #43 of 112 33 #75 of 112
Growth 94 #7 of 108 21 #86 of 108 40 #65 of 108
Profitability 84 #18 of 104 34 #69 of 104 88 #13 of 104
Financial Health 41 #69 of 116 18 #95 of 116 30 #81 of 116
Shareholder Returns 36 #50 of 78 71 #23 of 78 81 #16 of 78
Overall 55 41 55
  • CIEN ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • RBBN ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • CSCO ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCIENRBBNCSCOSPY
1 month -1.6%-8.9%+1.5% +0.7%
3 months -6.1%-23.1%-4.4% +3.7%
6 months -33.8%-38.3%+18.7% +7.1%
Year to date +49.3%-43.4%+41.0% +12.8%
1 year +84.5%-52.8%+52.2% +11.9%
3 years +750.3%-14.2%+110.6% +85.2%
3 years, per year +104.2%-5.0%+28.2% +22.8%
5 years +543.1%-70.2%+94.0% +67.6%
5 years, per year +45.1%-21.5%+14.2% +10.9%
10 years +1,689.6%-71.3%+255.0% +262.0%
10 years, per year +33.4%-11.7%+13.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureCIENRBBNCSCOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 77.9%69.3%35.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 82.7%79.5%37.1% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.801.331.10 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.08-0.761.47 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -49.7%-78.9%-38.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -44.3%-52.8%-16.5% -1.2%
52-week high $627.00$3.45$130.00 $779.14
52-week low $176.45$1.32$71.04 $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.

MultipleCIENRBBNCSCO
P/E now vs peer median 75.8xmedian 32.9x 15.7xmedian 32.9x 32.4xmedian 32.9x
P/S now vs peer median 8.2xmedian 2.9x 0.4xmedian 2.9x 6.8xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 55.9xmedian 20.0x 18.5xmedian 20.0x 24.7xmedian 20.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 60.8xmedian 30.2x -10.0xmedian 30.2x 33.6xmedian 30.2x
P/B now vs peer median 16.2xmedian 2.9x 0.8xmedian 2.9x 8.5xmedian 2.9x
PEG now vs peer median 1.69median 1.08 0.48median 1.08 12.01median 1.08

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 monthsCIENRBBNCSCO
Revenue $6.02B $800.98M $63.33B
Gross profit $2.65B $386.62M $40.86B
Operating income $738.95M -$29.02M $15.37B
Net income $654.41M $18.59M $13.27B
Free cash flow $814.36M -$29.11M $12.77B
R&D $924.94M $178.44M $9.56B
EPS (diluted) $4.48 $0.10 $3.33
Cash & equivalents $2.45B $40.38M $7.22B
Total debt $3.23B $342.88M $29.53B
Shares (diluted) 145.97M 178.86M 3.99B
Enterprise value $43.10B $43.80M $364.43B

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
MetricCIENRBBNCSCO
P/E 75.8x 15.7x 32.4x
P/FCF 60.8x -10.0x 33.6x
P/Operating cash flow 47.0x -15.6x 30.2x
P/S 8.2x 0.4x 6.8x
P/B 16.2x 0.8x 8.5x
P/Tangible book 17.3x 1.1x 10.0x
EV/EBITDA 55.9x 18.5x 24.7x
EV/EBIT 67.9x -20.5x 28.8x
EV/Revenue 8.3x 0.7x 7.0x
EV/FCF 61.6x -20.4x 34.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 47.5x -31.8x 31.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.69 0.48 12.01

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCIENRBBNCSCO
Revenue growth (1Y) 32.6% -7.8% 11.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 12.5% -1.3% 3.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 40.6% -12.1% 11.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 13.3% -1.2% 4.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) 200.1% -240.9% 30.7%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 29.1% 9.9% 0.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 364.5% 143.2% 30.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 43.5% 33.0% 1.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 359.9% 142.6% 30.7%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 44.8% 32.7% 2.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 34.5% -122.3% -0.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 201.2% -50.8% -10.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 34.5% -155.4% -3.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 95.4% -90.6% -12.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCIENRBBNCSCO
Gross margin 44.1% 48.3% 64.5%
EBITDA margin 14.9% 4.0% 28.3%
Operating margin 12.3% -3.6% 24.3%
Pretax margin 12.1% -8.9% 25.3%
Net margin 10.9% 2.3% 21.0%
FCF margin 13.5% -3.6% 20.2%
Operating cash flow margin 17.5% -2.3% 22.4%
Return on equity 22.0% 4.8% 26.8%
Return on assets 9.3% 1.6% 10.4%
Return on invested capital 12.4% 0.0% 15.9%
Return on capital employed 13.1% -3.5% 17.9%
Asset turnover 0.9x 0.7x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.6x -1.0x 1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 3.5% 2.7% 6.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCIENRBBNCSCO
Debt / assets 40.4% 29.8% 22.8%
Debt / equity 1.1x 0.9x 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 9.4x 0.8x
Debt / FCF 4.0x -11.8x 2.3x
Liabilities / assets 61.8% 66.2% 61.2%
Equity / assets 38.2% 33.8% 38.8%
Interest coverage 10.6x – 10.5x
Current ratio 3.8x 1.3x 0.9x
Quick ratio 2.8x 1.1x 0.6x
Cash ratio 1.9x 0.1x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 7.21 -1.00 4.11

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCIENRBBNCSCO
Dividend yield – – 1.5%
Net buyback yield -1.0% 1.4% 1.3%
Shareholder yield -1.0% 1.4% 2.9%
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.

ConsensusCIENRBBNCSCO
Forward P/E 45.9xFY2026 32.6xFY2026 22.9xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $7.60FY2026 $0.05FY2026 $4.74FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +187.9%FY2026 -92.4%FY2026 +9.5%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +64.7% +200.0% +20.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $6.86BFY2026 $790.52MFY2026 $74.93BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +43.8%FY2026 -6.4%FY2026 +18.3%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after +18.0% +11.9% +0.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCIENRBBNCSCO
Held by institutions 92.9% 71.8% 80.1%
Institutions holding 1,221 161 4,047
Change in shares held, QoQ -1.7% -0.7% +5.0%
Institutions buying 730 88 1,847
Institutions selling 379 41 1,818
Buyers to sellers 1.93 2.15 1.02

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.

CIENRBBNCSCO
CIEN 1.00 0.25 0.36
RBBN 0.25 1.00 0.21
CSCO 0.36 0.21 1.00

Add a Peer

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CIEN, RBBN and CSCO?

Cisco Systems (CSCO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ciena (CIEN) $49.54B, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) $291.65M, Cisco Systems (CSCO) $428.50B.

Which stock is cheaper, CIEN, RBBN and CSCO?

Ribbon Communications (RBBN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ciena (CIEN) 75.8x, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 15.7x, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 32.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Cisco Systems (CSCO) is cheapest (Ciena (CIEN) 45.9x, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 32.6x, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 22.9x). 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: Ciena (CIEN) +32.6%, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) -7.8%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) +11.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Cisco Systems (CSCO) has the highest net margin (Ciena (CIEN) 10.9%, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 2.3%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 21.0%). On return on invested capital, Cisco Systems (CSCO) leads (Ciena (CIEN) 12.4%, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 0.0%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 15.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ciena (CIEN) returned the most: Ciena (CIEN) +84.5%, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) -52.8%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) +52.2%. Over five years, Ciena (CIEN) compounded fastest (Ciena (CIEN) +45.1%/yr, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) -21.5%/yr, Cisco Systems (CSCO) +14.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Cisco Systems (CSCO) 1.54%. Ciena (CIEN) and Ribbon Communications (RBBN) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cisco Systems (CSCO) has been the steadiest (Ciena (CIEN) 77.9%, Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 69.3%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 35.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CIEN, RBBN and CSCO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cisco Systems (CSCO) leads on 5. 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.