MSFT vs CSCO vs ORCL Stock Comparison

Microsoft, Cisco Systems and Oracle Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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
CSCO Cisco Systems, Inc.
$106.50 +0.1% 1M +51.6% 1Y
Market cap
$436.07B
P/E
32.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$63.33B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
2 wins
ORCL Oracle Corp
$126.08 -12.8% 1M -55.0% 1Y
Market cap
$373.36B
P/E
19.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$71.78B
Div. yield
0.02%
ERP Software Technology
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Microsoft leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Microsoft 6, Oracle 4, Cisco Systems 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMSFTCSCOORCLLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.96T $436.07B $373.36B MSFT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 29.6x 32.9x 19.8x ORCL
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.7x 22.5x 14.7x ORCL
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +17.8% +11.8% +21.6% ORCL
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 40.3% 21.0% 26.2% MSFT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 26.7% 15.9% 11.0% MSFT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -0.2x 0.8x 2.6x MSFT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.02% ORCL
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +0.8% +51.6% -55.0% CSCO
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +11.2%/yr +14.1%/yr +5.1%/yr CSCO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 32.7% 35.4% 56.9% MSFT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 79/100 53/100 54/100 MSFT

Percentile Scorecard

MSFTCSCOORCL

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

AxisMSFTCSCOORCL
Valuation 54 #18 of 38 32 #77 of 112 56 #45 of 101
Growth 77 #9 of 36 40 #66 of 109 65 #35 of 97
Profitability 97 #2 of 34 88 #14 of 105 87 #13 of 94
Financial Health 84 #7 of 38 28 #84 of 117 40 #66 of 109
Shareholder Returns 81 #5 of 22 77 #20 of 82 21 #51 of 64
Overall 79 53 54
  • MSFT ranked among 39 companies in Cloud Computing
  • CSCO ranked among 122 companies in Computer Hardware
  • ORCL ranked among 114 companies in Business Applications

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodMSFTCSCOORCLSPY
1 month +4.8%+0.1%-12.8% -1.0%
3 months +37.4%-6.7%+9.6% +2.9%
6 months +23.5%+19.6%-27.2% +6.4%
Year to date +8.5%+38.3%-35.3% +11.4%
1 year +0.8%+51.6%-55.0% +13.1%
3 years +58.7%+100.9%+22.2% +79.4%
3 years, per year +16.7%+26.2%+6.9% +21.5%
5 years +69.7%+93.2%+28.3% +67.7%
5 years, per year +11.2%+14.1%+5.1% +10.9%
10 years +779.2%+253.2%+232.4% +255.2%
10 years, per year +24.3%+13.5%+12.8% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureMSFTCSCOORCLSPY
Volatility, 1Y 32.7%35.4%56.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 30.9%37.3%56.7% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.001.092.22 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.021.46-0.97 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -37.6%-38.6%-65.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -3.5%-18.1%-55.5% -2.5%
52-week high $543.45$130.00$283.33 $779.14
52-week low $352.83$70.27$115.01 $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.

MultipleMSFTCSCOORCL
P/E now vs peer median 29.1xmedian 29.1x 31.7xmedian 31.3x 19.9xmedian 29.9x
P/S now vs peer median 11.7xmedian 4.5x 6.6xmedian 2.6x 5.3xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.4xmedian 21.5x 24.2xmedian 19.6x 13.8xmedian 17.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 58.2xmedian 17.3x 32.9xmedian 28.3x -13.3xmedian 16.9x
P/B now vs peer median 8.8xmedian 3.9x 8.4xmedian 2.9x 5.7xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 1.28median 0.33 11.78median 1.15 0.84median 0.86

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 monthsMSFTCSCOORCL
Revenue $331.84B $63.33B $71.78B
Gross profit $225.47B $40.86B –
Operating income $155.24B $15.37B $23.06B
Net income $133.75B $13.27B $18.92B
Free cash flow $66.99B $12.77B -$28.72B
R&D $35.56B $9.56B $10.18B
EPS (diluted) $17.95 $3.33 $6.27
Cash & equivalents $20.94B $7.22B $36.37B
Total debt $164.03B $29.53B $497.56B
Shares (diluted) 7.45B 3.99B 3.00B
Enterprise value $3.88T $371.99B $245.49B

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
MetricMSFTCSCOORCL
P/E 29.1x 31.7x 19.9x
P/FCF 58.2x 32.9x -13.3x
P/Operating cash flow 21.3x 29.6x 8.1x
P/S 11.7x 6.6x 5.3x
P/B 8.8x 8.4x 5.7x
P/Tangible book 9.2x 9.8x 5.7x
EV/EBITDA 19.4x 24.2x 13.8x
EV/EBIT 24.9x 28.2x 20.4x
EV/Revenue 11.6x 6.9x 6.5x
EV/FCF 57.6x 34.0x -16.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.1x 30.6x 10.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.28 11.78 0.84

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMSFTCSCOORCL
Revenue growth (1Y) 17.8% 11.8% 21.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 16.1% 3.6% 12.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 16.3% 11.1% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 15.6% 4.6% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 20.8% 30.7% 28.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 20.6% 0.7% 18.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 31.3% 30.3% 52.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 22.7% 1.7% 26.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 31.6% 30.7% 46.7%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 22.8% 2.7% 23.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 34.4% -0.1% 118.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 27.8% -10.7% 38.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -6.5% -3.9% -388.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 4.0% -12.5% -71.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMSFTCSCOORCL
Gross margin 67.9% 64.5% –
EBITDA margin 59.9% 28.3% 47.3%
Operating margin 46.8% 24.3% 32.1%
Pretax margin 50.0% 25.3% 30.3%
Net margin 40.3% 21.0% 26.2%
FCF margin 20.2% 20.2% -40.0%
Operating cash flow margin 55.1% 22.4% 65.4%
Return on equity 31.2% 26.8% 34.3%
Return on assets 18.4% 10.4% 6.7%
Return on invested capital 26.7% 15.9% 11.0%
Return on capital employed 27.8% 17.9% 9.8%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.5x 0.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.4x 1.1x 2.5x
Stock comp / revenue 3.7% 6.0% 6.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMSFTCSCOORCL
Debt / assets 5.3% 22.8% 41.3%
Debt / equity 0.1x 0.6x 1.9x
Net debt / EBITDA -0.2x 0.8x 2.6x
Debt / FCF 0.6x 2.3x -4.4x
Liabilities / assets 41.7% 61.2% 77.8%
Equity / assets 58.3% 38.8% 22.2%
Interest coverage 50.9x 10.5x 4.5x
Current ratio 1.2x 0.9x 1.2x
Quick ratio 0.9x 0.6x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.5x 0.4x 0.8x
Altman Z-score 9.18 4.05 1.48

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMSFTCSCOORCL
Dividend yield 0.7% 1.6% 1.6%
Net buyback yield 0.5% 1.3% -5.3%
Shareholder yield 1.2% 2.9% -3.7%
Payout ratio (earnings) 19.8% – 31.4%
Payout ratio (FCF) 39.5% – -20.7%
Dividend growth (1Y) 9.8% – 17.5%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 10.1% – 15.1%

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.

ConsensusMSFTCSCOORCL
Forward P/E 25.7xFY2027 22.5xFY2027 14.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $20.38FY2027 $4.74FY2027 $8.57FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +17.9%FY2027 +9.5%FY2027 +12.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +11.5% +20.7% +23.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $402.02BFY2027 $74.93BFY2027 $95.06BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +21.1%FY2027 +18.3%FY2027 +41.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +12.7% +0.6% +45.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMSFTCSCOORCL
Held by institutions 73.9% 80.1% 44.7%
Institutions holding 6,227 4,044 3,495
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.3% +5.0% +6.5%
Institutions buying 3,432 1,846 1,807
Institutions selling 2,425 1,816 1,308
Buyers to sellers 1.42 1.02 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.

MSFTCSCOORCL
MSFT 1.00 0.03 0.47
CSCO 0.03 1.00 0.23
ORCL 0.47 0.23 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MSFT, CSCO and ORCL?

Microsoft (MSFT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Microsoft (MSFT) $3.96T, Cisco Systems (CSCO) $436.07B, Oracle (ORCL) $373.36B.

Which stock is cheaper, MSFT, CSCO and ORCL?

Oracle (ORCL) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Microsoft (MSFT) 29.6x, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 32.9x, Oracle (ORCL) 19.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Oracle (ORCL) is cheapest (Microsoft (MSFT) 25.7x, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 22.5x, Oracle (ORCL) 14.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Oracle (ORCL) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Microsoft (MSFT) +17.8%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) +11.8%, Oracle (ORCL) +21.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Microsoft (MSFT) has the highest net margin (Microsoft (MSFT) 40.3%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 21.0%, Oracle (ORCL) 26.2%). On return on invested capital, Microsoft (MSFT) leads (Microsoft (MSFT) 26.7%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 15.9%, Oracle (ORCL) 11.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Cisco Systems (CSCO) returned the most: Microsoft (MSFT) +0.8%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) +51.6%, Oracle (ORCL) -55.0%. Over five years, Cisco Systems (CSCO) compounded fastest (Microsoft (MSFT) +11.2%/yr, Cisco Systems (CSCO) +14.1%/yr, Oracle (ORCL) +5.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Oracle (ORCL) has the highest dividend yield: Microsoft (MSFT) 0.01%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 0.00%, Oracle (ORCL) 0.02%. Cisco Systems (CSCO) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Microsoft (MSFT) has been the steadiest (Microsoft (MSFT) 32.7%, Cisco Systems (CSCO) 35.4%, Oracle (ORCL) 56.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MSFT, CSCO and ORCL?

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.