EQIX vs GDS vs NDAQ Stock Comparison

Equinix, GDS Holdings and Nasdaq Prices as of Nov 3, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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EQIX Equinix Inc
$1,014.40 -1.1% 1M +21.8% 1Y
Market cap
$104.18B
P/E
63.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.06B
Div. yield
–
Data Centers Technology
2 wins
GDS GDS Holdings Ltd
$21.86 -20.7% 1M -37.1% 1Y
Market cap
$4.43B
P/E
8.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.75B
Div. yield
–
Data Centers Technology
4 wins
NDAQ Nasdaq, Inc.
$106.97 +18.4% 1M +23.8% 1Y
Market cap
$61.31B
P/E
29.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.15B
Div. yield
–
Exchanges Financial Services
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Nasdaq leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Nasdaq 5, GDS Holdings 4, Equinix 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionEQIXGDSNDAQLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $104.18B $4.43B $61.31B EQIX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 63.2x 8.4x 29.4x GDS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 57.6x 42.0x 26.5x NDAQ
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +11.1% +15.8% +11.5% GDS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 16.4% 30.1% 22.8% GDS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.7% 1.0% 10.5% NDAQ
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 4.3x 3.1x 2.4x NDAQ
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +21.8% -37.1% +23.8% NDAQ
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +4.8%/yr -17.5%/yr +8.6%/yr NDAQ
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.6% 56.8% 28.4% EQIX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 56/100 70/100 53/100 GDS

Percentile Scorecard

EQIXGDSNDAQ

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

AxisEQIXGDSNDAQ
Valuation 35 #25 of 38 95 #3 of 38 41 #61 of 103
Growth 37 #23 of 36 60 #15 of 36 39 #43 of 70
Profitability 85 #6 of 34 73 #10 of 34 77 #18 of 74
Financial Health 46 #21 of 38 51 #19 of 38 48 #52 of 99
Shareholder Returns 76 #6 of 22 – 60 #17 of 41
Overall 56 70 53
  • EQIX ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing
  • GDS ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing
  • NDAQ ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodEQIXGDSNDAQSPY
1 month -1.1%-20.7%+18.4% -2.0%
3 months -3.5%-34.5%+14.3% -2.2%
6 months -5.9%-51.4%+20.2% +4.2%
Year to date +32.4%-37.4%+10.1% +10.6%
1 year +21.8%-37.1%+23.8% +10.4%
3 years +31.6%+98.2%+113.0% +73.6%
3 years, per year +9.6%+25.6%+28.7% +20.2%
5 years +26.2%-61.9%+51.2% +61.6%
5 years, per year +4.8%-17.5%+8.6% +10.1%
10 years +199.5%+110.2%+400.2% +261.3%
10 years, per year +11.6%+7.7%+17.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureEQIXGDSNDAQSPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.6%56.8%28.4% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 22.8%57.9%29.9% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.612.000.55 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.85-0.650.84 0.81
Max drawdown, 5Y -40.2%-91.8%-33.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.1%-54.0%-1.5% -3.2%
52-week high $1,115.94$47.52$108.62 $779.14
52-week low $726.09$21.77$76.85 $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.

MultipleEQIXGDSNDAQ
P/E now vs peer median 60.8xmedian 27.1x 7.9xmedian 27.1x 28.7xmedian 29.4x
P/S now vs peer median 10.0xmedian 4.1x 2.6xmedian 4.1x 6.5xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 26.8xmedian 21.7x 10.8xmedian 21.7x 20.1xmedian 13.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median -40.3xmedian 16.1x 4.7xmedian 16.1x 26.5xmedian 14.8x
P/B now vs peer median 6.9xmedian 3.4x 1.0xmedian 3.4x 5.0xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 2.83median 0.37 0.12median 0.37 1.57median 0.55

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 monthsEQIXGDSNDAQ
Revenue $10.06B $1.75B $9.15B
Gross profit $5.19B $436.56M $5.78B
Operating income $2.26B $82.93M $2.73B
Net income $1.65B $542.46M $2.08B
Free cash flow -$2.49B $952.99M $2.26B
R&D – $4.66M –
EPS (diluted) $16.60 $2.57 $3.70
Cash & equivalents $2.36B $2.20B $365.00M
Total debt $22.63B $4.03B $8.74B
Shares (diluted) 99.28M 205.57M 563.31M
Enterprise value $92.08B -$3.84B $58.74B

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
MetricEQIXGDSNDAQ
P/E 60.8x 7.9x 28.7x
P/FCF -40.3x 4.7x 26.5x
P/Operating cash flow 24.1x 8.8x 23.5x
P/S 10.0x 2.6x 6.5x
P/B 6.9x 1.0x 5.0x
P/Tangible book 7.5x 1.0x 10.1x
EV/EBITDA 26.8x 10.8x 20.1x
EV/EBIT 52.8x 76.5x 24.9x
EV/Revenue 11.9x 3.6x 7.4x
EV/FCF -47.9x 6.7x 30.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 28.6x 12.3x 26.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.83 0.12 1.57

Growth

14 metrics
MetricEQIXGDSNDAQ
Revenue growth (1Y) 11.1% 15.8% 11.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.2% 8.1% 15.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 14.0% 27.6% 13.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 8.4% 14.4% 16.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 48.1% -57.2% 23.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 18.0% -5.5% 20.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 53.8% -14.6% 28.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 23.6% 71.9% 23.6%
EPS growth (1Y) 52.2% -26.4% 31.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 21.5% 65.7% 18.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 11.3% 15.3% 9.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.9% 20.0% 12.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -349.4% 3.3% 7.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -756.4% -11.1% 11.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricEQIXGDSNDAQ
Gross margin 51.6% 24.9% 63.2%
EBITDA margin 44.4% 33.5% 37.0%
Operating margin 22.5% 4.7% 29.8%
Pretax margin 18.3% 14.8% 28.5%
Net margin 16.4% 30.1% 22.8%
FCF margin -24.8% 54.3% 24.7%
Operating cash flow margin 41.5% 29.3% 27.8%
Return on equity 11.4% 12.5% 17.4%
Return on assets 3.8% 4.4% 7.6%
Return on invested capital 5.7% 1.0% 10.5%
Return on capital employed 5.9% 0.8% 12.0%
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.1x 0.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.5x 0.9x 1.2x
Stock comp / revenue 5.4% 2.5% 1.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricEQIXGDSNDAQ
Debt / assets 50.9% 31.9% 31.9%
Debt / equity 1.6x 0.9x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 4.3x 3.1x 2.4x
Debt / FCF -9.1x 4.2x 3.9x
Liabilities / assets 67.3% 64.8% 56.2%
Equity / assets 32.7% 35.2% 43.8%
Interest coverage 3.7x 0.4x 7.9x
Current ratio 1.3x 1.8x 1.0x
Quick ratio 1.1x 1.4x 0.4x
Cash ratio 0.8x 1.1x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 2.68 0.61 3.54

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricEQIXGDSNDAQ
Dividend yield 2.0% – 1.1%
Net buyback yield -0.1% – 2.5%
Shareholder yield 1.9% – 3.5%
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.

ConsensusEQIXGDSNDAQ
Forward P/E 57.6xFY2026 42.0xFY2026 26.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $17.61FY2026 $0.52FY2026 $4.03FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +28.0%FY2026 +550.0%FY2026 +15.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +10.8% -103.8% +11.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $10.81BFY2026 $1.96BFY2026 $6.10BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +17.3%FY2026 +20.4%FY2026 +16.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -0.7% +1.6% +13.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersEQIXGDSNDAQ
Held by institutions 98.2% 50.9% 83.8%
Institutions holding 1,358 200 1,084
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.0% +15.4% +1.0%
Institutions buying 729 121 539
Institutions selling 420 61 398
Buyers to sellers 1.74 1.98 1.35

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.

EQIXGDSNDAQ
EQIX 1.00 0.23 -0.05
GDS 0.23 1.00 0.09
NDAQ -0.05 0.09 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, EQIX, GDS and NDAQ?

Equinix (EQIX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Equinix (EQIX) $104.18B, GDS Holdings (GDS) $4.43B, Nasdaq (NDAQ) $61.31B.

Which stock is cheaper, EQIX, GDS and NDAQ?

GDS Holdings (GDS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Equinix (EQIX) 63.2x, GDS Holdings (GDS) 8.4x, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 29.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Nasdaq (NDAQ) is cheapest (Equinix (EQIX) 57.6x, GDS Holdings (GDS) 42.0x, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 26.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

GDS Holdings (GDS) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Equinix (EQIX) +11.1%, GDS Holdings (GDS) +15.8%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +11.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

GDS Holdings (GDS) has the highest net margin (Equinix (EQIX) 16.4%, GDS Holdings (GDS) 30.1%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 22.8%). On return on invested capital, Nasdaq (NDAQ) leads (Equinix (EQIX) 5.7%, GDS Holdings (GDS) 1.0%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 10.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Nasdaq (NDAQ) returned the most: Equinix (EQIX) +21.8%, GDS Holdings (GDS) -37.1%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +23.8%. Over five years, Nasdaq (NDAQ) compounded fastest (Equinix (EQIX) +4.8%/yr, GDS Holdings (GDS) -17.5%/yr, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +8.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Equinix (EQIX) has been the steadiest (Equinix (EQIX) 25.6%, GDS Holdings (GDS) 56.8%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 28.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, EQIX, GDS and NDAQ?

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