FFIV vs NTSK vs PANW Stock Comparison

F5, Netskope and Palo Alto Networks Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
FFIV F5, Inc.
$365.53 -16.1% 1M +36.6% 1Y
Market cap
$20.44B
P/E
28.3x
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
3 wins
NTSK Netskope Inc
$26.52 +48.6% 1M +13.8% 1Y
Market cap
$10.59B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$802.64M
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
1 win
PANW Palo Alto Networks Inc
$394.49 +0.6% 1M +78.2% 1Y
Market cap
$283.08B
P/E
922.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.48B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
5 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Palo Alto Networks leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Palo Alto Networks 5, F5 3, Netskope 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionFFIVNTSKPANWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $20.44B $10.59B $283.08B PANW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 28.3x -14.4x 922.1x FFIV
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 21.4x — 90.3x FFIV
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months — +30.4% +24.5% NTSK
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — -91.8% 2.7% PANW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — — — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +36.6% +13.8% +78.2% PANW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +11.6%/yr — +36.0%/yr PANW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 41.2% 77.4% 49.6% FFIV
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers — 24/100 50/100 PANW

Percentile Scorecard

FFIVNTSKPANW

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

AxisFFIVNTSKPANW
Valuation 73 #34 of 124 13 #108 of 124 42 #72 of 124
Growth 38 #70 of 113 38 #71 of 113 37 #72 of 113
Profitability – 24 #83 of 109 76 #27 of 109
Financial Health – 31 #88 of 127 38 #79 of 127
Shareholder Returns – 15 #54 of 63 57 #28 of 63
Overall – 24 50
  • FFIV ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • NTSK ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • PANW ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodFFIVNTSKPANWSPY
1 month -16.1%+48.6%+0.6% +0.9%
3 months -5.5%+121.7%+25.6% +5.9%
6 months +11.4%+166.5%+117.3% +8.5%
Year to date +43.2%+51.2%+114.2% +13.3%
1 year +36.6%+13.8%+78.2% +12.4%
3 years +144.1%—+230.4% +88.1%
3 years, per year +34.7%—+49.0% +23.5%
5 years +73.1%—+364.9% +68.2%
5 years, per year +11.6%—+36.0% +11.0%
10 years +171.4%—+1,461.7% +263.4%
10 years, per year +10.5%—+31.6% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureFFIVNTSKPANWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 41.2%77.4%49.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 46.9%88.4%46.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.041.881.25 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.890.181.58 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -47.4%-70.0%-36.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -23.8%0.0%-6.1% -0.9%
52-week high $479.83$26.52$419.91 $779.14
52-week low $223.99$7.73$141.67 $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.

MultipleFFIVNTSKPANW
P/E now vs peer median 28.7xmedian 37.9x -14.6xmedian 37.9x 962.5xmedian 37.9x
P/S now vs peer median 7.5xmedian 4.4x 13.5xmedian 4.4x 28.0xmedian 4.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 34.5x -14.8xmedian 34.5x 148.8xmedian 34.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 25.7xmedian 26.6x -154.3xmedian 26.6x 78.2xmedian 26.6x
P/B now vs peer median 5.2xmedian 3.4x 69.0xmedian 3.4x 11.7xmedian 3.4x
PEG now vs peer median 1.19median 1.24 —median 1.24 -66.50median 1.24

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 monthsFFIVNTSKPANW
Revenue – $802.64M $11.48B
Gross profit $2.80B $561.19M $8.08B
Operating income $818.22M -$759.79M $695.00M
Net income $722.15M -$737.16M $307.00M
Free cash flow – -$70.14M $4.11B
R&D $621.42M $575.79M $2.55B
EPS (diluted) $12.55 $-1.82 $0.40
Cash & equivalents $1.59B $220.85M $2.51B
Shares (diluted) 57.55M 405.05M 764.00M
Enterprise value $20.44B $6.10B $268.16B

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
MetricFFIVNTSKPANW
P/E 28.7x -14.6x 962.5x
P/FCF 25.7x -154.3x 78.2x
P/Operating cash flow 21.6x -263.3x 70.6x
P/S 7.5x 13.5x 28.0x
P/B 5.2x 69.0x 11.7x
P/Tangible book 5.2x 78.3x 15.7x
EV/EBITDA – -14.8x 148.8x
EV/EBIT – -12.8x 458.2x
EV/Revenue – 12.1x 27.7x
EV/FCF – -139.0x 77.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.6x -237.3x 69.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.19 – -66.50

Growth

14 metrics
MetricFFIVNTSKPANW
Revenue growth (1Y) – 30.4% 24.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – – 18.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.3% 32.4% 19.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 8.0% – 17.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 6.8% -307.8% -44.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 20.1% – 21.5%
Net income growth (1Y) 4.3% -132.3% -72.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 22.3% – -11.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 6.4% 38.0% -74.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 24.2% – -14.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 1.0% – 22.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 13.7% – 17.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – – 18.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – – 16.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricFFIVNTSKPANW
Gross margin – 69.9% 70.4%
EBITDA margin – -82.0% 18.6%
Operating margin – -94.7% 6.1%
Pretax margin – -90.3% 4.7%
Net margin – -91.8% 2.7%
FCF margin – -8.7% 35.8%
Operating cash flow margin – -5.1% 39.7%
Return on equity – -443.7% 1.1%
Return on assets – -43.3% 0.6%
Return on invested capital – – –
Return on capital employed – -75.1% 1.9%
Asset turnover – 0.5x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 0.1x 14.8x
Stock comp / revenue – 79.4% 15.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricFFIVNTSKPANW
Debt / assets – – –
Debt / equity – – –
Net debt / EBITDA – – –
Debt / FCF – – –
Liabilities / assets – 90.8% 43.3%
Equity / assets 56.7% 9.2% 56.7%
Interest coverage – – –
Current ratio 1.7x 2.0x 0.9x
Quick ratio – 1.8x 0.7x
Cash ratio – 1.5x 0.3x
Altman Z-score – 1.33 9.53

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricFFIVNTSKPANW
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield – -9.6% -0.1%
Shareholder yield – -9.6% -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.

ConsensusFFIVNTSKPANW
Forward P/E 21.4xFY2027 – 90.3xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $17.06FY2027 $-0.16FY2026 $4.37FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +34.0%FY2027 – +13.8%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +14.3% – +16.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $3.52BFY2026 $868.74MFY2026 $13.37BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +13.8%FY2026 +22.5%FY2026 +16.5%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after +6.4% +28.8% +12.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersFFIVNTSKPANW
Held by institutions 96.6% 76.2% 82.1%
Institutions holding 831 203 2,915
Change in shares held, QoQ -2.6% +31.5% +6.6%
Institutions buying 483 154 1,548
Institutions selling 240 30 1,125
Buyers to sellers 2.01 5.13 1.38

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.

FFIVNTSKPANW
FFIV 1.00 0.28 0.32
NTSK 0.28 1.00 0.50
PANW 0.32 0.50 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, FFIV, NTSK and PANW?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) is the largest by market capitalisation: F5 (FFIV) $20.44B, Netskope (NTSK) $10.59B, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) $283.08B.

Which stock is cheaper, FFIV, NTSK and PANW?

F5 (FFIV) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (F5 (FFIV) 28.3x, Netskope (NTSK) -14.4x, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 922.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, F5 (FFIV) is cheapest (F5 (FFIV) 21.4x, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 90.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Netskope (NTSK) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Netskope (NTSK) +30.4%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +24.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) has the highest net margin (Netskope (NTSK) -91.8%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 2.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Palo Alto Networks (PANW) returned the most: F5 (FFIV) +36.6%, Netskope (NTSK) +13.8%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +78.2%. Over five years, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) compounded fastest (F5 (FFIV) +11.6%/yr, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +36.0%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, F5 (FFIV) has been the steadiest (F5 (FFIV) 41.2%, Netskope (NTSK) 77.4%, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 49.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, FFIV, NTSK and PANW?

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 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.