DBX vs ADBE vs MSFT Stock Comparison

Dropbox, Adobe and Microsoft Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
DBX Dropbox, Inc.
$37.83 +10.5% 1M +28.9% 1Y
Market cap
$8.48B
P/E
19.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.53B
Div. yield
–
Productivity Software Technology
2 wins
ADBE Adobe Inc.
$263.82 +9.6% 1M -25.5% 1Y
Market cap
$102.20B
P/E
14.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$25.97B
Div. yield
–
Creative Software Technology
3 wins
MSFT Microsoft Corp
$524.51 +4.8% 1M +0.8% 1Y
Market cap
$3.96T
P/E
29.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$331.84B
Div. yield
0.01%
Cloud Platforms Technology
6 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Microsoft leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Microsoft 6, Adobe 3, Dropbox 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDBXADBEMSFTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $8.48B $102.20B $3.96T MSFT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 19.2x 14.0x 29.6x ADBE
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 11.9x 10.5x 25.7x ADBE
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months 0.0% +12.0% +17.8% MSFT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 17.5% 28.0% 40.3% MSFT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 104.6% 54.5% 26.7% DBX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.8x -0.4x -0.2x ADBE
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.01% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +28.9% -25.5% +0.8% DBX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +4.5%/yr -16.3%/yr +11.2%/yr MSFT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 38.0% 42.0% 32.7% MSFT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 55/100 65/100 79/100 MSFT

Percentile Scorecard

DBXADBEMSFT

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

AxisDBXADBEMSFT
Valuation 55 #14 of 30 59 #13 of 30 54 #18 of 38
Growth 8 #25 of 27 19 #22 of 27 77 #9 of 36
Profitability 96 #2 of 26 100 #1 of 26 97 #2 of 34
Financial Health 16 #27 of 32 61 #13 of 32 84 #7 of 38
Shareholder Returns 100 #1 of 17 88 #3 of 17 81 #5 of 22
Overall 55 65 79
  • DBX ranked among 33 companies in Workplace Software
  • ADBE ranked among 33 companies in Workplace Software
  • MSFT ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodDBXADBEMSFTSPY
1 month +10.5%+9.6%+4.8% -1.0%
3 months +29.6%+17.2%+37.4% +2.9%
6 months +57.5%+7.5%+23.5% +6.4%
Year to date +36.1%-24.6%+8.5% +11.4%
1 year +28.9%-25.5%+0.8% +13.1%
3 years +38.5%-51.1%+58.7% +79.4%
3 years, per year +11.5%-21.2%+16.7% +21.5%
5 years +24.8%-59.0%+69.7% +67.7%
5 years, per year +4.5%-16.3%+11.2% +10.9%
10 years —+142.0%+779.2% +255.2%
10 years, per year —+9.2%+24.3% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureDBXADBEMSFTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 38.0%42.0%32.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 37.1%43.9%30.9% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.220.251.00 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.76-0.610.02 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -38.8%-71.9%-37.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high 0.0%-26.7%-3.5% -2.5%
52-week high $37.83$359.91$543.45 $779.14
52-week low $22.06$193.41$352.83 $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.

MultipleDBXADBEMSFT
P/E now vs peer median 19.2xmedian 32.3x 14.3xmedian 32.3x 29.1xmedian 29.1x
P/S now vs peer median 3.3xmedian 2.4x 4.0xmedian 2.4x 11.7xmedian 4.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 11.5xmedian 11.5x 9.9xmedian 11.5x 19.4xmedian 21.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 8.7xmedian 14.2x 9.7xmedian 14.2x 58.2xmedian 17.3x
P/B now vs peer median -3.8xmedian 2.7x 8.8xmedian 2.7x 8.8xmedian 3.9x
PEG now vs peer median 2.23median 0.77 0.78median 0.77 1.28median 0.33

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 monthsDBXADBEMSFT
Revenue $2.53B $25.97B $331.84B
Gross profit $2.02B $23.18B $225.47B
Operating income $674.50M $9.27B $155.24B
Net income $442.80M $7.28B $133.75B
Free cash flow $957.10M $10.59B $66.99B
R&D $741.50M $4.69B $35.56B
EPS (diluted) $1.95 $18.42 $17.95
Cash & equivalents $1.06B $4.36B $20.94B
Total debt $9.17B $1.60B $164.03B
Shares (diluted) 226.80M 395.50M 7.45B
Enterprise value $4.11B $77.45B $3.88T

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
MetricDBXADBEMSFT
P/E 19.2x 14.3x 29.1x
P/FCF 8.7x 9.7x 58.2x
P/Operating cash flow 8.5x 9.5x 21.3x
P/S 3.3x 4.0x 11.7x
P/B -3.8x 8.8x 8.8x
P/Tangible book -3.8x 9.5x 9.2x
EV/EBITDA 11.5x 9.9x 19.4x
EV/EBIT 14.5x 10.7x 24.9x
EV/Revenue 3.9x 3.8x 11.6x
EV/FCF 10.2x 9.4x 57.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 10.0x 9.2x 21.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.23 0.78 1.28

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDBXADBEMSFT
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.0% 12.0% 17.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 1.5% 11.2% 16.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -2.0% 12.2% 16.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 1.0% 11.8% 15.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) 18.8% 10.3% 20.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 65.2% 13.1% 20.6%
Net income growth (1Y) -8.8% 4.7% 31.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -5.4% 12.5% 22.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 11.3% 12.3% 31.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 8.6% 18.2% 22.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 8.7% 10.4% 34.4%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 8.2% 10.4% 27.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 7.2% 10.3% -6.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 8.5% 11.6% 4.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDBXADBEMSFT
Gross margin 79.7% 89.3% 67.9%
EBITDA margin 33.7% 38.6% 59.9%
Operating margin 26.6% 35.7% 46.8%
Pretax margin 22.1% 35.7% 50.0%
Net margin 17.5% 28.0% 40.3%
FCF margin 37.8% 40.8% 20.2%
Operating cash flow margin 38.7% 41.6% 55.1%
Return on equity – 62.6% 31.2%
Return on assets 15.1% 24.3% 18.4%
Return on invested capital 104.6% 54.5% 26.7%
Return on capital employed 38.5% 51.3% 27.8%
Asset turnover 0.9x 0.9x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.2x 1.5x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 12.0% 8.0% 3.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDBXADBEMSFT
Debt / assets 92.3% 5.3% 5.3%
Debt / equity -1.2x 0.1x 0.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.8x -0.4x -0.2x
Debt / FCF 2.7x 0.2x 0.6x
Liabilities / assets 177.4% 60.8% 41.7%
Equity / assets -77.4% 39.2% 58.3%
Interest coverage – 35.7x 50.9x
Current ratio 1.1x 0.8x 1.2x
Quick ratio 1.0x 0.7x 0.9x
Cash ratio 0.9x 0.5x 0.5x
Altman Z-score 0.72 7.54 9.18

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDBXADBEMSFT
Dividend yield – – 0.7%
Net buyback yield 18.1% 8.8% 0.5%
Shareholder yield 18.1% 8.8% 1.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 19.8%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 39.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 9.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 10.1%

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.

ConsensusDBXADBEMSFT
Forward P/E 11.9xFY2026 10.5xFY2026 25.7xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $3.19FY2026 $25.10FY2026 $20.38FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +12.3%FY2026 +19.9%FY2026 +17.9%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +9.7% +5.7% +11.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.70BFY2026 $24.94BFY2026 $402.02BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +7.0%FY2026 +4.9%FY2026 +21.1%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after -11.1% +21.2% +12.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDBXADBEMSFT
Held by institutions 80.4% 82.5% 73.9%
Institutions holding 451 1,982 6,227
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.8% +3.7% +3.3%
Institutions buying 222 838 3,432
Institutions selling 175 928 2,425
Buyers to sellers 1.27 0.90 1.42

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.

DBXADBEMSFT
DBX 1.00 0.58 0.30
ADBE 0.58 1.00 0.38
MSFT 0.30 0.38 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DBX, ADBE and MSFT?

Microsoft (MSFT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Dropbox (DBX) $8.48B, Adobe (ADBE) $102.20B, Microsoft (MSFT) $3.96T.

Which stock is cheaper, DBX, ADBE and MSFT?

Adobe (ADBE) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Dropbox (DBX) 19.2x, Adobe (ADBE) 14.0x, Microsoft (MSFT) 29.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Adobe (ADBE) is cheapest (Dropbox (DBX) 11.9x, Adobe (ADBE) 10.5x, Microsoft (MSFT) 25.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Microsoft (MSFT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Dropbox (DBX) 0.0%, Adobe (ADBE) +12.0%, Microsoft (MSFT) +17.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Microsoft (MSFT) has the highest net margin (Dropbox (DBX) 17.5%, Adobe (ADBE) 28.0%, Microsoft (MSFT) 40.3%). On return on invested capital, Dropbox (DBX) leads (Dropbox (DBX) 104.6%, Adobe (ADBE) 54.5%, Microsoft (MSFT) 26.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Dropbox (DBX) returned the most: Dropbox (DBX) +28.9%, Adobe (ADBE) -25.5%, Microsoft (MSFT) +0.8%. Over five years, Microsoft (MSFT) compounded fastest (Dropbox (DBX) +4.5%/yr, Adobe (ADBE) -16.3%/yr, Microsoft (MSFT) +11.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Dropbox (DBX) 0.00%, Adobe (ADBE) 0.00%, Microsoft (MSFT) 0.01%. Dropbox (DBX) and Adobe (ADBE) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Microsoft (MSFT) has been the steadiest (Dropbox (DBX) 38.0%, Adobe (ADBE) 42.0%, Microsoft (MSFT) 32.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, DBX, ADBE and MSFT?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Microsoft (MSFT) 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.