PANW vs CRWD vs AXON Stock Comparison

Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike Holdings and Axon Enterprise Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
PANW Palo Alto Networks Inc
$380.57 -2.0% 1M +75.2% 1Y
Market cap
$274.48B
P/E
894.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.48B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
4 wins
AXON Axon Enterprise, Inc.
$438.05 +4.4% 1M -42.3% 1Y
Market cap
$34.46B
P/E
172.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.22B
Div. yield
–
Cybersecurity Software Technology
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Axon Enterprise leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Axon Enterprise 5, Palo Alto Networks 4, CrowdStrike Holdings 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionPANWCRWDAXONLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $274.48B $255.01B $34.46B PANW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 894.1x 4,362x 172.9x AXON
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 87.1x 196.4x 55.1x AXON
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +24.5% +24.3% +34.6% AXON
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.7% 1.1% 6.2% AXON
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — -2.1% 0.4% AXON
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — -6.5x 7.9x CRWD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +75.2% -52.1% -42.3% PANW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +35.0%/yr -1.5%/yr +19.5%/yr PANW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 49.7% 150.4% 61.6% PANW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 59/100 48/100 CRWD

Percentile Scorecard

PANWCRWDAXON

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

AxisPANWCRWDAXON
Valuation 43 #71 of 124 21 #98 of 124 40 #75 of 124
Growth 37 #72 of 113 88 #15 of 113 55 #51 of 113
Profitability 75 #28 of 109 68 #36 of 109 60 #44 of 109
Financial Health 39 #78 of 127 61 #50 of 127 36 #82 of 127
Shareholder Returns 55 #29 of 63 57 #28 of 63 –
Overall 50 59 48
  • PANW ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • CRWD ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software
  • AXON ranked among 137 companies in Infrastructure Software

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodPANWCRWDAXONSPY
1 month -2.0%-0.6%+4.4% +0.7%
3 months +16.9%+41.0%-16.6% +3.7%
6 months +112.2%-41.4%+9.0% +7.1%
Year to date +106.6%-44.3%-22.9% +12.8%
1 year +75.2%-52.1%-42.3% +11.9%
3 years +219.1%+49.6%+117.1% +85.2%
3 years, per year +47.3%+14.4%+29.5% +22.8%
5 years +348.5%-7.3%+143.4% +67.6%
5 years, per year +35.0%-1.5%+19.5% +10.9%
10 years +1,406.6%—+1,849.5% +262.0%
10 years, per year +31.2%—+34.6% +13.7%

Risk

MeasurePANWCRWDAXONSPY
Volatility, 1Y 49.7%150.4%61.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 47.0%208.4%61.6% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.261.701.54 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.51-0.35-0.69 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -36.0%-77.1%-60.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.4%-66.6%-42.3% -1.2%
52-week high $419.91$782.17$759.44 $779.14
52-week low $141.67$179.38$345.94 $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.

MultiplePANWCRWDAXON
P/E now vs peer median 928.5xmedian 39.0x 4,554xmedian 39.0x 177.1xmedian 39.0x
P/S now vs peer median 27.0xmedian 4.6x 49.6xmedian 4.6x 11.1xmedian 4.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 143.5xmedian 32.7x 398.9xmedian 32.7x 275.2xmedian 32.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 75.4xmedian 27.4x 166.2xmedian 27.4x 267.2xmedian 27.4x
P/B now vs peer median 11.3xmedian 3.2x 52.0xmedian 3.2x 9.7xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median -64.16median 1.23 122.58median 1.23 7.73median 1.23

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 monthsPANWCRWDAXON
Revenue $11.48B $5.40B $3.22B
Gross profit $8.08B $4.06B $1.91B
Operating income $695.00M -$119.49M $23.77M
Net income $307.00M $77.40M $199.30M
Free cash flow $4.11B $1.61B $133.19M
R&D $2.55B $1.56B $768.36M
EPS (diluted) $0.40 $0.06 $2.41
Cash & equivalents $2.51B $5.01B $597.70M
Total debt – $2.98B $1.73B
Shares (diluted) 764.00M 1.04B 82.54M
Enterprise value $259.55B $235.42B $28.98B

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
MetricPANWCRWDAXON
P/E 928.5x 4,554x 177.1x
P/FCF 75.4x 166.2x 267.2x
P/Operating cash flow 68.1x 132.6x 133.9x
P/S 27.0x 49.6x 11.1x
P/B 11.3x 52.0x 9.7x
P/Tangible book 15.1x 54.9x 10.5x
EV/EBITDA 143.5x 398.9x 275.2x
EV/EBIT 441.9x -2,202x 1,541x
EV/Revenue 26.8x 48.8x 11.4x
EV/FCF 74.7x 163.6x 275.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 67.4x 130.5x 137.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -64.16 122.58 7.73

Growth

14 metrics
MetricPANWCRWDAXON
Revenue growth (1Y) 24.5% 24.3% 34.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 18.5% 26.9% 33.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 19.3% 26.2% 32.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 17.5% 27.6% 32.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) -44.1% 66.9% 1,682%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 21.5% 7.9% -40.2%
Net income growth (1Y) -72.9% 127.3% -38.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -11.3% 41.4% 26.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -74.9% 120.0% -39.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -14.5% 37.2% 22.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 22.5% 45.2% -3.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 17.9% 23.8% 18.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 18.6% 45.4% -24.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 16.1% 24.1% 6.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricPANWCRWDAXON
Gross margin 70.4% 75.2% 59.4%
EBITDA margin 18.6% 12.2% 4.1%
Operating margin 6.1% -2.2% 0.7%
Pretax margin 4.7% 1.4% 5.7%
Net margin 2.7% 1.1% 6.2%
FCF margin 35.8% 29.8% 4.1%
Operating cash flow margin 39.7% 37.4% 8.3%
Return on equity 1.1% 1.6% 5.5%
Return on assets 0.6% 0.7% 2.7%
Return on invested capital – -2.1% 0.4%
Return on capital employed 1.9% -1.7% 0.4%
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.5x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 14.8x 26.1x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 15.5% 23.1% 19.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricPANWCRWDAXON
Debt / assets – 6.2% 23.1%
Debt / equity – 0.1x 0.5x
Net debt / EBITDA – -6.5x 7.9x
Debt / FCF – 0.5x 13.0x
Liabilities / assets 43.3% 57.3% 50.9%
Equity / assets 56.7% 42.7% 49.1%
Interest coverage – -4.5x 0.2x
Current ratio 0.9x 1.6x 2.1x
Quick ratio 0.7x 1.4x 1.6x
Cash ratio 0.3x 1.1x 0.5x
Altman Z-score 9.21 23.82 6.52

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricPANWCRWDAXON
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield -0.1% 0.0% –
Shareholder yield -0.1% 0.0% –
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.

ConsensusPANWCRWDAXON
Forward P/E 87.1xFY2027 196.4xFY2026 55.1xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $4.37FY2027 $1.33FY2026 $7.95FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +13.8%FY2027 +43.0%FY2026 +16.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +16.5% +23.3% +29.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $13.37BFY2027 $6.28BFY2026 $3.57BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +16.5%FY2027 +30.5%FY2026 +28.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +12.7% +22.3% +41.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersPANWCRWDAXON
Held by institutions 82.1% 77.4% 88.7%
Institutions holding 2,916 2,434 1,119
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.6% +12.2% +8.0%
Institutions buying 1,548 1,375 668
Institutions selling 1,126 838 324
Buyers to sellers 1.37 1.64 2.06

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.

PANWCRWDAXON
PANW 1.00 0.34 0.33
CRWD 0.34 1.00 0.13
AXON 0.33 0.13 1.00

Add a Peer

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, PANW, CRWD and AXON?

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Palo Alto Networks (PANW) $274.48B, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) $255.01B, Axon Enterprise (AXON) $34.46B.

Which stock is cheaper, PANW, CRWD and AXON?

Axon Enterprise (AXON) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 894.1x, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 4,362x, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 172.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Axon Enterprise (AXON) is cheapest (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 87.1x, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 196.4x, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 55.1x). 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%, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) +24.3%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) +34.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Axon Enterprise (AXON) has the highest net margin (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 2.7%, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 1.1%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 6.2%). On return on invested capital, Axon Enterprise (AXON) leads (CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) -2.1%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 0.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Palo Alto Networks (PANW) returned the most: Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +75.2%, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) -52.1%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) -42.3%. Over five years, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) compounded fastest (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) +35.0%/yr, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) -1.5%/yr, Axon Enterprise (AXON) +19.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Palo Alto Networks (PANW) has been the steadiest (Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 49.7%, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) 150.4%, Axon Enterprise (AXON) 61.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

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

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