NOW vs ESTC vs CTSH Stock Comparison

ServiceNow, Elastic and Cognizant Technology Solutions Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
NOW ServiceNow, Inc.
$158.19 +16.6% 1M -15.0% 1Y
Market cap
$163.57B
P/E
97.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$14.73B
Div. yield
–
Business Process Automation Technology
3 wins
ESTC Elastic N.V.
$106.26 +20.7% 1M +20.5% 1Y
Market cap
$11.17B
P/E
29.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.80B
Div. yield
–
Data Infrastructure Technology
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Cognizant Technology Solutions leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Cognizant Technology Solutions 4, Elastic 4, ServiceNow 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionNOWESTCCTSHLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $163.57B $11.17B $31.34B NOW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 97.7x 29.6x 14.6x CTSH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 41.1x 30.3x 12.4x CTSH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +22.2% +16.2% +5.6% NOW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 11.3% 20.8% 10.3% ESTC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 0.0% 13.7% CTSH
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.8x -10.8x 0.1x ESTC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — 1.87% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -15.0% +20.5% +2.2% ESTC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +3.5%/yr -8.8%/yr -2.3%/yr NOW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 58.8% 58.2% 43.0% CTSH
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 70/100 77/100 69/100 ESTC

Percentile Scorecard

NOWESTCCTSH

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

AxisNOWESTCCTSH
Valuation 60 #17 of 41 72 #19 of 65 41 #17 of 28
Growth 68 #13 of 38 93 #5 of 56 55 #11 of 23
Profitability 83 #7 of 36 77 #13 of 52 94 #2 of 19
Financial Health 64 #18 of 48 50 #35 of 69 80 #9 of 40
Shareholder Returns 77 #4 of 14 96 #2 of 24 78 #3 of 10
Overall 70 77 69
  • NOW ranked among 51 companies in Business Applications
  • ESTC ranked among 75 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • CTSH ranked among 43 companies in Technology Services

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodNOWESTCCTSHSPY
1 month +16.6%+20.7%+20.9% -0.8%
3 months +49.9%+73.6%+47.4% +3.5%
6 months +74.9%+122.2%+26.9% +7.0%
Year to date +3.3%+40.9%-16.5% +12.2%
1 year -15.0%+20.5%+2.2% +13.0%
3 years +42.8%+40.7%+9.5% +86.3%
3 years, per year +12.6%+12.1%+3.1% +23.1%
5 years +19.0%-37.0%-10.8% +68.6%
5 years, per year +3.5%-8.8%-2.3% +11.0%
10 years +902.5%—+36.3% +258.0%
10 years, per year +25.9%—+3.1% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureNOWESTCCTSHSPY
Volatility, 1Y 58.8%58.2%43.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 61.5%59.3%43.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.621.140.10 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.250.350.05 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -64.5%-76.8%-58.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -16.4%0.0%-20.0% -1.8%
52-week high $189.26$106.26$86.70 $779.14
52-week low $83.00$43.30$38.73 $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.

MultipleNOWESTCCTSH
P/E now vs peer median 97.7xmedian 20.8x 29.6xmedian 50.3x 14.6xmedian 15.3x
P/S now vs peer median 11.1xmedian 2.5x 6.2xmedian 2.5x 1.4xmedian 0.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 48.7xmedian 21.3x 124.2xmedian 35.4x 8.0xmedian 8.9x
P/FCF now vs peer median 35.7xmedian 25.2x 32.0xmedian 18.0x 12.1xmedian 8.5x
P/B now vs peer median 13.1xmedian 2.1x 8.6xmedian 1.5x 2.2xmedian 1.0x
PEG now vs peer median 18.80median 2.04 0.55median 1.58 4.45median 2.48

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 monthsNOWESTCCTSH
Revenue $14.73B $1.80B $21.64B
Gross profit $11.02B $1.36B $7.24B
Operating income $1.68B -$47.61M $3.44B
Net income $1.67B $375.64M $2.22B
Free cash flow $4.58B $349.04M $2.60B
R&D $3.26B $455.30M –
EPS (diluted) $1.61 $3.59 $4.76
Cash & equivalents $2.50B $879.87M $1.04B
Total debt $7.52B $571.20M $1.56B
Shares (diluted) 1.03B 104.64M 466.00M
Enterprise value $142.03B $5.69B $24.51B

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
MetricNOWESTCCTSH
P/E 97.7x 29.6x 14.6x
P/FCF 35.7x 32.0x 12.1x
P/Operating cash flow 30.8x 31.5x 10.7x
P/S 11.1x 6.2x 1.4x
P/B 13.1x 8.6x 2.2x
P/Tangible book 18.7x 8.7x 2.5x
EV/EBITDA 48.7x 124.2x 8.0x
EV/EBIT 99.1x -215.9x 9.3x
EV/Revenue 11.3x 5.7x 1.5x
EV/FCF 36.3x 29.5x 12.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 31.4x 29.0x 10.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 18.80 0.55 4.45

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNOWESTCCTSH
Revenue growth (1Y) 22.2% 16.2% 5.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 22.5% 17.4% 3.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 16.4% 16.7% 3.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 20.5% 18.8% 2.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 4.9% -56.0% 8.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 49.1% 37.5% 7.5%
Net income growth (1Y) 0.5% 549.9% -8.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 5.5% 55.3% 0.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 1.7% 555.6% -3.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 5.2% 53.7% 3.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 13.0% 11.3% 13.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 22.2% 62.1% 5.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 19.0% 11.2% 13.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 25.7% 63.2% 6.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNOWESTCCTSH
Gross margin 74.8% 75.5% 33.4%
EBITDA margin 23.2% 4.6% 18.5%
Operating margin 11.4% -2.6% 15.9%
Pretax margin 15.9% -1.1% 16.2%
Net margin 11.3% 20.8% 10.3%
FCF margin 31.1% 19.4% 12.0%
Operating cash flow margin 36.0% 19.6% 13.5%
Return on equity 13.8% 29.2% 15.0%
Return on assets 6.0% 12.2% 10.7%
Return on invested capital – 0.0% 13.7%
Return on capital employed 10.6% -2.3% 20.0%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.6x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.2x 0.9x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 12.3% 16.8% 0.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNOWESTCCTSH
Debt / assets 23.7% 19.0% 7.5%
Debt / equity 0.6x 0.4x 0.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.8x -10.8x 0.1x
Debt / FCF 1.6x 1.6x 0.6x
Liabilities / assets 60.5% 56.8% 30.6%
Equity / assets 39.5% 43.2% 69.4%
Interest coverage – -1.9x 95.4x
Current ratio 0.7x 1.8x 2.2x
Quick ratio 0.6x 1.6x 1.7x
Cash ratio 0.4x 1.4x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 5.89 4.47 5.76

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNOWESTCCTSH
Dividend yield – – 1.9%
Net buyback yield 1.9% 3.1% 7.5%
Shareholder yield 1.9% 3.1% 9.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 27.8%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 23.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 1.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 2.3%

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.

ConsensusNOWESTCCTSH
Forward P/E 41.1xFY2026 30.3xFY2026 12.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $3.85FY2026 $3.51FY2026 $5.61FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +9.7%FY2026 +36.6%FY2026 +6.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +27.3% +19.4% +10.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $15.24BFY2026 $1.88BFY2026 $20.77BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +14.8%FY2026 +8.2%FY2026 -1.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +17.7% +18.3% +7.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNOWESTCCTSH
Held by institutions 81.6% 86.4% 100.0%
Institutions holding 2,224 371 915
Change in shares held, QoQ -2.1% +1.7% +6.6%
Institutions buying 1,285 199 464
Institutions selling 779 129 352
Buyers to sellers 1.65 1.54 1.32

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.

NOWESTCCTSH
NOW 1.00 0.64 0.55
ESTC 0.64 1.00 0.36
CTSH 0.55 0.36 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NOW, ESTC and CTSH?

ServiceNow (NOW) is the largest by market capitalisation: ServiceNow (NOW) $163.57B, Elastic (ESTC) $11.17B, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) $31.34B.

Which stock is cheaper, NOW, ESTC and CTSH?

Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (ServiceNow (NOW) 97.7x, Elastic (ESTC) 29.6x, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) 14.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) is cheapest (ServiceNow (NOW) 41.1x, Elastic (ESTC) 30.3x, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) 12.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

ServiceNow (NOW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: ServiceNow (NOW) +22.2%, Elastic (ESTC) +16.2%, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) +5.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Elastic (ESTC) has the highest net margin (ServiceNow (NOW) 11.3%, Elastic (ESTC) 20.8%, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) 10.3%). On return on invested capital, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) leads (Elastic (ESTC) 0.0%, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) 13.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Elastic (ESTC) returned the most: ServiceNow (NOW) -15.0%, Elastic (ESTC) +20.5%, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) +2.2%. Over five years, ServiceNow (NOW) compounded fastest (ServiceNow (NOW) +3.5%/yr, Elastic (ESTC) -8.8%/yr, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) -2.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) 1.87%. ServiceNow (NOW) and Elastic (ESTC) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) has been the steadiest (ServiceNow (NOW) 58.8%, Elastic (ESTC) 58.2%, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) 43.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, NOW, ESTC and CTSH?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) leads on 4. 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.