CRWD vs PANW vs ZS Stock Comparison

CrowdStrike Holdings, Palo Alto Networks and Zscaler Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
PANW Palo Alto Networks Inc
$351.72 -12.8% 1M +59.7% 1Y
Market cap
$286.65B
P/E
858.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.48B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
7 wins
ZS Zscaler, Inc.
$223.79 +13.8% 1M -32.4% 1Y
Market cap
$36.49B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
1 win

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Palo Alto Networks leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Palo Alto Networks 7, Zscaler 1, CrowdStrike Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCRWDPANWZSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $247.60B $286.65B $36.49B PANW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 4,217x 858.1x -567.5x PANW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 181.8x 80.5x 49.2x ZS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +24.3% +24.5% — PANW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 1.1% 2.7% — PANW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -2.1% — — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -6.5x — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -55.5% +59.7% -32.4% PANW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -2.2%/yr +33.5%/yr -7.3%/yr PANW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 150.8% 50.2% 71.6% PANW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 49/100 — CRWD

Percentile Scorecard

CRWDPANWZS

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

AxisCRWDPANWZS
Valuation 21 #98 of 124 42 #72 of 124 20 #99 of 124
Growth 88 #15 of 113 37 #72 of 113 –
Profitability 67 #37 of 110 74 #29 of 110 –
Financial Health 62 #50 of 129 38 #81 of 129 32 #88 of 129
Shareholder Returns 55 #31 of 67 53 #32 of 67 –
Overall 58 49 –
  • CRWD ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • PANW ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • ZS ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCRWDPANWZSSPY
1 month -10.5%-12.8%+13.8% -2.3%
3 months +19.4%+1.3%+44.9% -0.7%
6 months -48.5%+90.6%+57.4% +4.8%
Year to date -48.4%+90.9%-0.5% +10.3%
1 year -55.5%+59.7%-32.4% +10.3%
3 years +28.5%+188.9%+36.2% +73.0%
3 years, per year +8.7%+42.5%+10.8% +20.1%
5 years -10.7%+322.9%-31.7% +61.9%
5 years, per year -2.2%+33.5%-7.3% +10.1%
10 years —+1,337.4%— +258.6%
10 years, per year —+30.5%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCRWDPANWZSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 150.8%50.2%71.6% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 207.6%47.5%82.5% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.721.301.01 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.371.19-0.45 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -77.1%-36.0%-76.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -69.1%-16.2%-33.4% -3.5%
52-week high $782.17$419.91$336.27 $779.14
52-week low $179.38$141.67$118.05 $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.

MultipleCRWDPANWZS
P/E now vs peer median 4,217xmedian 35.6x 858.1xmedian 35.6x -567.5xmedian 35.6x
P/S now vs peer median 45.9xmedian 4.2x 25.0xmedian 4.2x 10.9xmedian 4.2x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 368.9xmedian 30.0x 132.5xmedian 30.0x —median 30.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 153.9xmedian 25.2x 69.7xmedian 25.2x 42.8xmedian 25.2x
P/B now vs peer median 48.2xmedian 3.2x 10.4xmedian 3.2x 14.0xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median 113.50median 1.21 -59.29median 1.21 —median 1.21

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 monthsCRWDPANWZS
Revenue $5.40B $11.48B –
Gross profit $4.06B $8.08B –
Operating income -$119.49M $695.00M –
Net income $77.40M $307.00M –
Free cash flow $1.61B $4.11B –
R&D $1.56B $2.55B –
EPS (diluted) $0.06 $0.40 –
Cash & equivalents $5.01B $2.51B $928.35M
Total debt $746.22M – –
Shares (diluted) 1.04B 764.00M 160.22M
Enterprise value $228.04B $271.72B $22.61B

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
MetricCRWDPANWZS
P/E 4,217x 858.1x -567.5x
P/FCF 153.9x 69.7x 42.8x
P/Operating cash flow 122.8x 63.0x –
P/S 45.9x 25.0x 10.9x
P/B 48.2x 10.4x 14.0x
P/Tangible book 50.9x 14.0x 15.3x
EV/EBITDA 368.9x 132.5x –
EV/EBIT -2,036x 408.0x –
EV/Revenue 45.1x 24.7x –
EV/FCF 151.3x 68.9x –
EV/Operating cash flow 120.7x 62.3x –
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 113.50 -59.29 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCRWDPANWZS
Revenue growth (1Y) 24.3% 24.5% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 26.9% 18.5% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 26.2% 19.3% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 27.6% 17.5% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 66.9% -44.1% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 7.9% 21.5% –
Net income growth (1Y) 127.3% -72.9% –
Net income CAGR (3Y) 41.4% -11.3% –
EPS growth (1Y) 120.0% -74.9% –
EPS CAGR (3Y) 37.2% -14.5% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 45.2% 22.5% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 23.8% 17.9% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 45.4% 18.6% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 24.1% 16.1% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCRWDPANWZS
Gross margin 75.2% 70.4% –
EBITDA margin 12.2% 18.6% –
Operating margin -2.2% 6.1% –
Pretax margin 1.4% 4.7% –
Net margin 1.1% 2.7% –
FCF margin 29.8% 35.8% –
Operating cash flow margin 37.4% 39.7% –
Return on equity 1.6% 1.1% –
Return on assets 0.7% 0.6% –
Return on invested capital -2.1% – –
Return on capital employed -1.7% 1.9% –
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.2x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 26.1x 14.8x –
Stock comp / revenue 23.1% 15.5% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCRWDPANWZS
Debt / assets 6.2% – –
Debt / equity 0.1x – –
Net debt / EBITDA -6.5x – –
Debt / FCF 0.5x – –
Liabilities / assets 57.3% 43.3% 67.0%
Equity / assets 42.7% 56.7% 33.0%
Interest coverage -4.5x – –
Current ratio 1.6x 0.9x 1.7x
Quick ratio 1.4x 0.7x 1.6x
Cash ratio 1.1x 0.3x 1.2x
Altman Z-score 22.10 8.54 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCRWDPANWZS
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield 0.0% -0.1% –
Shareholder yield 0.0% -0.1% –
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.

ConsensusCRWDPANWZS
Forward P/E 181.8xFY2026 80.5xFY2027 49.2xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $1.33FY2026 $4.37FY2027 $4.55FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +43.0%FY2026 +13.8%FY2027 +8.1%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +23.3% +16.5% +27.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $6.28BFY2026 $13.37BFY2027 $4.07BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +30.5%FY2026 +16.5%FY2027 +21.5%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after +22.3% +12.7% +19.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCRWDPANWZS
Held by institutions 77.4% 82.1% 51.4%
Institutions holding 2,435 2,917 736
Change in shares held, QoQ +12.2% +6.6% -3.9%
Institutions buying 1,375 1,548 417
Institutions selling 839 1,127 237
Buyers to sellers 1.64 1.37 1.76

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.

CRWDPANWZS
CRWD 1.00 0.34 0.24
PANW 0.34 1.00 0.62
ZS 0.24 0.62 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CRWD, PANW and ZS?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) is the largest by market capitalisation: CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) $247.60B, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) $286.65B, Zscaler (ZS) $36.49B.

Which stock is cheaper, CRWD, PANW and ZS?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 4,217x, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 858.1x, Zscaler (ZS) -567.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Zscaler (ZS) is cheapest (CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 181.8x, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 80.5x, Zscaler (ZS) 49.2x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) +24.3%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +24.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) has the highest net margin (CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 1.1%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 2.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Palo Alto Networks (PANW) returned the most: CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) -55.5%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +59.7%, Zscaler (ZS) -32.4%. Over five years, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) compounded fastest (CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) -2.2%/yr, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +33.5%/yr, Zscaler (ZS) -7.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) has been the steadiest (CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 150.8%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 50.2%, Zscaler (ZS) 71.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CRWD, PANW and ZS?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) leads on 7. 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.