PANW vs AXON vs FTNT Stock Comparison

Palo Alto Networks, Axon Enterprise and Fortinet Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
PANW Palo Alto Networks Inc
$401.70 +7.2% 1M +82.4% 1Y
Market cap
$327.39B
P/E
980.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.48B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
2 wins
AXON Axon Enterprise, Inc.
$425.87 -1.0% 1M -43.1% 1Y
Market cap
$34.60B
P/E
172.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.22B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
1 win
FTNT Fortinet, Inc.
$185.00 +6.7% 1M +116.9% 1Y
Market cap
$135.72B
P/E
64.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$7.53B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
8 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Fortinet leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Fortinet 8, Palo Alto Networks 2, Axon Enterprise 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionPANWAXONFTNTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $327.39B $34.60B $135.72B PANW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 980.0x 172.2x 64.0x FTNT
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 91.9x 53.6x 51.7x FTNT
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +24.5% +34.6% +18.8% AXON
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.7% 6.2% 28.2% FTNT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 0.4% 111.7% FTNT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 7.9x -1.2x FTNT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +82.4% -43.1% +116.9% FTNT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +37.1%/yr +19.5%/yr +23.1%/yr PANW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 49.6% 61.5% 42.7% FTNT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 48/100 69/100 FTNT

Percentile Scorecard

PANWAXONFTNT

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

AxisPANWAXONFTNT
Valuation 42 #72 of 124 41 #74 of 124 49 #64 of 124
Growth 38 #71 of 113 58 #48 of 113 64 #41 of 113
Profitability 76 #27 of 109 60 #44 of 109 100 #1 of 109
Financial Health 38 #79 of 127 34 #84 of 127 54 #59 of 127
Shareholder Returns 55 #30 of 65 – 77 #16 of 65
Overall 50 48 69
  • PANW ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • AXON ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • FTNT ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodPANWAXONFTNTSPY
1 month +7.2%-1.0%+6.7% -0.2%
3 months +25.9%-22.2%+23.3% +3.9%
6 months +121.9%+4.8%+115.8% +8.2%
Year to date +118.1%-25.0%+133.0% +12.9%
1 year +82.4%-43.1%+116.9% +12.3%
3 years +236.5%+112.1%+228.8% +87.4%
3 years, per year +49.9%+28.5%+48.7% +23.3%
5 years +383.6%+143.9%+182.5% +67.9%
5 years, per year +37.1%+19.5%+23.1% +10.9%
10 years +1,510.7%+1,791.1%+2,993.6% +261.1%
10 years, per year +32.0%+34.2%+41.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasurePANWAXONFTNTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 49.6%61.5%42.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 46.9%61.8%37.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.251.560.99 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.66-0.702.74 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -36.0%-60.3%-38.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -4.3%-43.9%-5.0% -1.2%
52-week high $419.91$759.44$194.75 $779.14
52-week low $141.67$345.94$75.23 $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.

MultiplePANWAXONFTNT
P/E now vs peer median 980.0xmedian 38.6x 172.2xmedian 38.6x 64.0xmedian 38.6x
P/S now vs peer median 28.5xmedian 4.4x 10.7xmedian 4.4x 18.0xmedian 4.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 151.5xmedian 34.5x 267.8xmedian 34.5x 44.5xmedian 34.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 79.6xmedian 29.4x 259.7xmedian 29.4x 43.5xmedian 29.4x
P/B now vs peer median 11.9xmedian 3.3x 9.4xmedian 3.3x 87.5xmedian 3.3x
PEG now vs peer median -67.72median 1.28 7.51median 1.28 2.20median 1.28

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 monthsPANWAXONFTNT
Revenue $11.48B $3.22B $7.53B
Gross profit $8.08B $1.91B $6.04B
Operating income $695.00M $23.77M $2.44B
Net income $307.00M $199.30M $2.12B
Free cash flow $4.11B $133.19M $3.12B
R&D $2.55B $768.36M $846.40M
EPS (diluted) $0.40 $2.41 $2.87
Cash & equivalents $2.51B $597.70M $2.93B
Total debt – $1.73B $2.99B
Shares (diluted) 764.00M 82.54M 739.90M
Enterprise value $312.46B $29.12B $121.65B

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
MetricPANWAXONFTNT
P/E 980.0x 172.2x 64.0x
P/FCF 79.6x 259.7x 43.5x
P/Operating cash flow 71.9x 130.2x 40.0x
P/S 28.5x 10.7x 18.0x
P/B 11.9x 9.4x 87.5x
P/Tangible book 16.0x 10.2x 92.1x
EV/EBITDA 151.5x 267.8x 44.5x
EV/EBIT 466.6x 1,500x 54.1x
EV/Revenue 28.3x 11.1x 17.6x
EV/FCF 78.9x 267.7x 42.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 71.2x 134.1x 38.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -67.72 7.51 2.20

Growth

14 metrics
MetricPANWAXONFTNT
Revenue growth (1Y) 24.5% 34.6% 18.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 18.5% 33.2% 14.7%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 19.3% 32.2% 17.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 17.5% 32.0% 16.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) -44.1% 1,682% 24.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 21.5% -40.2% 27.6%
Net income growth (1Y) -72.9% -38.9% 9.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -11.3% 26.5% 26.0%
EPS growth (1Y) -74.9% -39.3% 14.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -14.5% 22.9% 29.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 22.5% -3.5% 41.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 17.9% 18.8% 15.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 18.6% -24.5% 53.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 16.1% 6.3% 16.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricPANWAXONFTNT
Gross margin 70.4% 59.4% 80.2%
EBITDA margin 18.6% 4.1% 39.4%
Operating margin 6.1% 0.7% 32.4%
Pretax margin 4.7% 5.7% 34.8%
Net margin 2.7% 6.2% 28.2%
FCF margin 35.8% 4.1% 41.4%
Operating cash flow margin 39.7% 8.3% 45.1%
Return on equity 1.1% 5.5% 166.9%
Return on assets 0.6% 2.7% 20.4%
Return on invested capital – 0.4% 111.7%
Return on capital employed 1.9% 0.4% 44.2%
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.4x 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 14.8x 1.3x 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 15.5% 19.7% 3.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricPANWAXONFTNT
Debt / assets – 23.1% 4.6%
Debt / equity – 0.5x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA – 7.9x -1.2x
Debt / FCF – 13.0x 0.2x
Liabilities / assets 43.3% 50.9% 85.7%
Equity / assets 56.7% 49.1% 14.3%
Interest coverage – 0.2x 135.7x
Current ratio 0.9x 2.1x 1.3x
Quick ratio 0.7x 1.6x 1.1x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.5x 0.8x
Altman Z-score 9.70 6.36 10.29

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricPANWAXONFTNT
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield -0.1% – 2.1%
Shareholder yield -0.1% – 2.1%
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.

ConsensusPANWAXONFTNT
Forward P/E 91.9xFY2027 53.6xFY2026 51.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $4.37FY2027 $7.95FY2026 $3.58FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +13.8%FY2027 +16.1%FY2026 +29.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +16.5% +29.2% +0.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $13.37BFY2027 $3.57BFY2026 $8.38BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +16.5%FY2027 +28.3%FY2026 +23.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +12.7% +41.4% +13.2%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersPANWAXONFTNT
Held by institutions 82.1% 88.7% 68.6%
Institutions holding 2,914 1,118 1,567
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.6% +8.0% +23.7%
Institutions buying 1,547 667 854
Institutions selling 1,125 324 549
Buyers to sellers 1.38 2.06 1.56

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.

PANWAXONFTNT
PANW 1.00 0.33 0.77
AXON 0.33 1.00 0.33
FTNT 0.77 0.33 1.00

Add a Peer

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, PANW, AXON and FTNT?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Palo Alto Networks (PANW) $327.39B, Axon Enterprise (AXON) $34.60B, Fortinet (FTNT) $135.72B.

Which stock is cheaper, PANW, AXON and FTNT?

Fortinet (FTNT) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 980.0x, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 172.2x, Fortinet (FTNT) 64.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Fortinet (FTNT) is cheapest (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 91.9x, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 53.6x, Fortinet (FTNT) 51.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Axon Enterprise (AXON) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +24.5%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) +34.6%, Fortinet (FTNT) +18.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Fortinet (FTNT) has the highest net margin (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 2.7%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 6.2%, Fortinet (FTNT) 28.2%). On return on invested capital, Fortinet (FTNT) leads (Axon Enterprise (AXON) 0.4%, Fortinet (FTNT) 111.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Fortinet (FTNT) returned the most: Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +82.4%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) -43.1%, Fortinet (FTNT) +116.9%. Over five years, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) compounded fastest (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +37.1%/yr, Axon Enterprise (AXON) +19.5%/yr, Fortinet (FTNT) +23.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Fortinet (FTNT) has been the steadiest (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 49.6%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 61.5%, Fortinet (FTNT) 42.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, PANW, AXON and FTNT?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Fortinet (FTNT) leads on 8. 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.