GDS vs APLD vs EQIX Stock Comparison

GDS Holdings, Applied Digital and Equinix Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
GDS GDS Holdings Ltd
$22.81 -30.4% 1M -36.5% 1Y
Market cap
$4.71B
P/E
8.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.75B
Div. yield
–
Data Centers Technology
4 wins
APLD Applied Digital Corp.
$19.51 -25.7% 1M -43.2% 1Y
Market cap
$5.80B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$853.85M
Div. yield
–
Data Centers Technology
2 wins
EQIX Equinix Inc
$999.38 -0.9% 1M +18.6% 1Y
Market cap
$98.61B
P/E
64.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.81B
Div. yield
2.02%
Data Centers Technology
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

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

QuestionGDSAPLDEQIXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $4.71B $5.80B $98.61B EQIX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 8.2x -12.1x 64.3x GDS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 43.9x — 56.8x GDS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +15.8% +286.2% +9.6% APLD
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 30.1% -54.9% 15.6% GDS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 1.0% -4.1% 5.6% EQIX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.1x -18.4x 4.0x APLD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — 2.02% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -36.5% -43.2% +18.6% EQIX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -18.0%/yr -7.5%/yr +3.4%/yr EQIX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 56.9% 101.3% 26.0% EQIX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 69/100 35/100 56/100 GDS

Percentile Scorecard

GDSAPLDEQIX

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

AxisGDSAPLDEQIX
Valuation 95 #3 of 38 30 #27 of 38 35 #25 of 38
Growth 57 #16 of 36 51 #18 of 36 37 #23 of 36
Profitability 73 #10 of 34 30 #24 of 34 82 #7 of 34
Financial Health 51 #19 of 38 43 #22 of 38 49 #20 of 38
Shareholder Returns – 20 #17 of 21 75 #6 of 21
Overall 69 35 56
  • GDS ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing
  • APLD ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing
  • EQIX ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodGDSAPLDEQIXSPY
1 month -30.4%-25.7%-0.9% -0.2%
3 months -25.5%-26.7%-3.4% +3.9%
6 months -45.4%-39.2%-7.2% +8.2%
Year to date -34.6%-20.4%+30.4% +12.9%
1 year -36.5%-43.2%+18.6% +12.3%
3 years +137.9%+305.6%+40.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year +33.5%+59.5%+12.1% +23.3%
5 years -62.9%-32.4%+17.9% +67.9%
5 years, per year -18.0%-7.5%+3.4% +10.9%
10 years —+22,171.7%+184.3% +261.1%
10 years, per year —+71.7%+11.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureGDSAPLDEQIXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 56.9%101.3%26.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 58.0%95.0%23.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.994.430.56 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.64-0.430.72 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -91.8%-97.0%-40.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -52.0%-60.7%-10.4% -1.2%
52-week high $47.52$49.65$1,115.94 $779.14
52-week low $22.14$17.83$726.09 $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.

MultipleGDSAPLDEQIX
P/E now vs peer median 8.2xmedian 29.5x -12.1xmedian 29.5x 64.3xmedian 29.5x
P/S now vs peer median 2.7xmedian 4.5x 6.8xmedian 4.5x 10.1xmedian 4.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 11.1xmedian 23.9x -49.6xmedian 23.9x 26.9xmedian 23.9x
P/FCF now vs peer median 4.9xmedian 15.0x -1.3xmedian 15.0x -38.2xmedian 15.0x
P/B now vs peer median 1.1xmedian 4.3x 3.6xmedian 4.3x 6.9xmedian 4.3x
PEG now vs peer median 0.12median 0.38 0.26median 0.38 2.98median 0.38

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 monthsGDSAPLDEQIX
Revenue $1.75B $853.85M $9.81B
Gross profit $436.56M $273.30M $5.05B
Operating income $82.93M -$303.82M $2.14B
Net income $542.46M -$351.47M $1.53B
Free cash flow $952.99M -$4.46B -$2.58B
R&D $4.66M – –
EPS (diluted) $2.57 $-1.61 $15.46
Cash & equivalents $2.20B $2.95B $979.00M
Total debt $15.20B $6.38B $19.70B
Shares (diluted) 205.57M 291.56M 99.14M
Enterprise value -$3.43B -$379.12M $87.16B

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
MetricGDSAPLDEQIX
P/E 8.2x -12.1x 64.3x
P/FCF 4.9x -1.3x -38.2x
P/Operating cash flow 9.2x 24.6x 25.0x
P/S 2.7x 6.8x 10.1x
P/B 1.1x 3.6x 6.9x
P/Tangible book 1.1x 3.6x 7.5x
EV/EBITDA 11.1x -49.6x 26.9x
EV/EBIT 78.8x -30.4x 54.3x
EV/Revenue 3.7x 10.8x 11.8x
EV/FCF 6.9x -2.1x -44.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 12.7x 39.2x 29.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.12 0.26 2.98

Growth

14 metrics
MetricGDSAPLDEQIX
Revenue growth (1Y) 15.8% 286.2% 9.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 8.1% 115.9% 7.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 27.6% 653.6% 12.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 14.4% 134.2% 8.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) -57.2% -254.9% 44.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -5.5% -87.5% 17.1%
Net income growth (1Y) -14.6% -44.2% 54.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 71.9% -88.1% 23.8%
EPS growth (1Y) -26.4% -66.0% 52.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 65.7% -46.3% 21.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 15.3% 294.3% 12.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 20.0% 72.3% 9.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 3.3% -346.5% -860.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -11.1% -272.4% -142.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricGDSAPLDEQIX
Gross margin 24.9% 32.0% 51.5%
EBITDA margin 33.5% -21.8% 44.1%
Operating margin 4.7% -35.6% 21.8%
Pretax margin 14.8% -40.2% 17.4%
Net margin 30.1% -54.9% 15.6%
FCF margin 54.3% -521.8% -26.3%
Operating cash flow margin 29.3% 27.5% 40.2%
Return on equity 12.5% -21.1% 10.7%
Return on assets 4.4% -3.2% 3.7%
Return on invested capital 1.0% -4.1% 5.6%
Return on capital employed 0.8% -3.3% 5.8%
Asset turnover 0.1x 0.1x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.9x -0.7x 2.6x
Stock comp / revenue 2.5% 31.8% 5.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricGDSAPLDEQIX
Debt / assets 31.9% 54.5% 48.0%
Debt / equity 0.9x 4.0x 1.4x
Net debt / EBITDA 3.1x -18.4x 4.0x
Debt / FCF 4.2x -1.4x -7.6x
Liabilities / assets 64.8% 86.3% 65.0%
Equity / assets 35.2% 13.7% 35.0%
Interest coverage 0.4x -3.1x 3.8x
Current ratio 1.8x 2.6x 1.1x
Quick ratio 1.4x 1.9x 0.9x
Cash ratio 1.1x 1.9x 0.6x
Altman Z-score 0.62 0.49 2.88

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricGDSAPLDEQIX
Dividend yield – – 2.0%
Net buyback yield – -15.9% -0.1%
Shareholder yield – -15.9% 1.9%
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.

ConsensusGDSAPLDEQIX
Forward P/E 43.9xFY2026 – 56.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.52FY2026 $-1.69FY2026 $17.61FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +550.0%FY2026 – +28.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -103.8% – +10.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.96BFY2026 $1.00BFY2026 $10.81BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +20.4%FY2026 +64.0%FY2026 +17.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +1.6% +87.8% -0.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersGDSAPLDEQIX
Held by institutions 50.9% 74.5% 97.5%
Institutions holding 198 564 1,356
Change in shares held, QoQ +15.4% +8.6% +3.3%
Institutions buying 120 339 727
Institutions selling 61 164 420
Buyers to sellers 1.97 2.07 1.73

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.

GDSAPLDEQIX
GDS 1.00 0.42 0.20
APLD 0.42 1.00 0.34
EQIX 0.20 0.34 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, GDS, APLD and EQIX?

Equinix (EQIX) is the largest by market capitalisation: GDS Holdings (GDS) $4.71B, Applied Digital (APLD) $5.80B, Equinix (EQIX) $98.61B.

Which stock is cheaper, GDS, APLD and EQIX?

GDS Holdings (GDS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (GDS Holdings (GDS) 8.2x, Applied Digital (APLD) -12.1x, Equinix (EQIX) 64.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, GDS Holdings (GDS) is cheapest (GDS Holdings (GDS) 43.9x, Equinix (EQIX) 56.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Applied Digital (APLD) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: GDS Holdings (GDS) +15.8%, Applied Digital (APLD) +286.2%, Equinix (EQIX) +9.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

GDS Holdings (GDS) has the highest net margin (GDS Holdings (GDS) 30.1%, Applied Digital (APLD) -54.9%, Equinix (EQIX) 15.6%). On return on invested capital, Equinix (EQIX) leads (GDS Holdings (GDS) 1.0%, Applied Digital (APLD) -4.1%, Equinix (EQIX) 5.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Equinix (EQIX) returned the most: GDS Holdings (GDS) -36.5%, Applied Digital (APLD) -43.2%, Equinix (EQIX) +18.6%. Over five years, Equinix (EQIX) compounded fastest (GDS Holdings (GDS) -18.0%/yr, Applied Digital (APLD) -7.5%/yr, Equinix (EQIX) +3.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Equinix (EQIX) 2.02%. GDS Holdings (GDS) and Applied Digital (APLD) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Equinix (EQIX) has been the steadiest (GDS Holdings (GDS) 56.9%, Applied Digital (APLD) 101.3%, Equinix (EQIX) 26.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

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

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