RBBN vs CIEN vs CALX Stock Comparison

Ribbon Communications, Ciena and Calix Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CIEN Ciena Corp
$284.22 -27.4% 1M +49.7% 1Y
Market cap
$39.21B
P/E
59.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.02B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
7 wins
CALX Calix, Inc
$36.19 +4.0% 1M -47.1% 1Y
Market cap
$2.10B
P/E
46.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.15B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
3 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Ciena leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Ciena 7, Calix 3, Ribbon Communications 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionRBBNCIENCALXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $274.55M $39.21B $2.10B CIEN
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 14.8x 59.9x 46.0x RBBN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 31.6x 39.5x 20.5x CALX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -7.8% +32.6% +27.8% CIEN
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.3% 10.9% 4.6% CIEN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 0.0% 12.4% — CIEN
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 9.4x 0.7x — CIEN
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -51.8% +49.7% -47.1% CIEN
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -23.0%/yr +36.4%/yr -13.0%/yr CIEN
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 69.7% 79.6% 40.8% CALX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 40/100 54/100 75/100 CALX

Percentile Scorecard

RBBNCIENCALX

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

AxisRBBNCIENCALX
Valuation 62 #43 of 112 20 #90 of 112 59 #47 of 112
Growth 20 #87 of 108 94 #7 of 108 82 #20 of 108
Profitability 32 #71 of 104 84 #18 of 104 64 #38 of 104
Financial Health 17 #97 of 116 41 #69 of 116 75 #30 of 116
Shareholder Returns 71 #24 of 80 33 #54 of 80 98 #3 of 80
Overall 40 54 75
  • RBBN ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • CIEN ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • CALX ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodRBBNCIENCALXSPY
1 month -8.5%-27.4%+4.0% -2.3%
3 months -23.6%-27.3%-3.2% -0.7%
6 months -39.3%-47.2%-16.7% +4.8%
Year to date -43.7%+21.5%-31.6% +10.3%
1 year -51.8%+49.7%-47.1% +10.3%
3 years -21.4%+547.4%+1.7% +73.0%
3 years, per year -7.7%+86.5%+0.6% +20.1%
5 years -72.9%+372.1%-50.0% +61.9%
5 years, per year -23.0%+36.4%-13.0% +10.1%
10 years -70.9%+1,369.6%+444.2% +258.6%
10 years, per year -11.6%+30.8%+18.5% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureRBBNCIENCALXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 69.7%79.6%40.8% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 79.8%85.5%44.0% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.332.900.98 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.740.62-1.16 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -78.9%-54.7%-65.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -51.8%-54.7%-46.2% -3.5%
52-week high $3.36$627.00$67.24 $779.14
52-week low $1.32$176.45$33.15 $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.

MultipleRBBNCIENCALX
P/E now vs peer median 15.6xmedian 29.9x 61.7xmedian 29.9x 44.9xmedian 29.9x
P/S now vs peer median 0.4xmedian 2.8x 6.7xmedian 2.8x 2.1xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 18.4xmedian 18.5x 45.6xmedian 18.5x 26.3xmedian 18.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median -10.0xmedian 28.0x 49.5xmedian 28.0x 26.7xmedian 28.0x
P/B now vs peer median 0.7xmedian 2.8x 13.2xmedian 2.8x 3.2xmedian 2.8x
PEG now vs peer median 0.48median 1.00 1.38median 1.00 6.35median 1.00

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 monthsRBBNCIENCALX
Revenue $800.98M $6.02B $1.15B
Gross profit $386.62M $2.65B $637.49M
Operating income -$29.02M $738.95M $60.39M
Net income $18.59M $654.41M $45.75M
Free cash flow -$29.11M $814.36M $62.16M
R&D $178.44M $924.94M $215.00M
EPS (diluted) $0.10 $4.48 $0.71
Cash & equivalents $40.38M $2.45B $55.89M
Total debt $342.88M $3.23B –
Shares (diluted) 178.86M 145.97M 64.45M
Enterprise value $26.70M $32.77B $1.12B

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
MetricRBBNCIENCALX
P/E 15.6x 61.7x 44.9x
P/FCF -10.0x 49.5x 26.7x
P/Operating cash flow -15.5x 38.2x 20.8x
P/S 0.4x 6.7x 2.1x
P/B 0.7x 13.2x 3.2x
P/Tangible book 1.1x 14.1x 3.2x
EV/EBITDA 18.4x 45.6x 26.3x
EV/EBIT -20.4x 55.4x 34.0x
EV/Revenue 0.7x 6.8x 1.9x
EV/FCF -20.3x 50.3x 24.4x
EV/Operating cash flow -31.7x 38.8x 19.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.48 1.38 6.35

Growth

14 metrics
MetricRBBNCIENCALX
Revenue growth (1Y) -7.8% 32.6% 27.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -1.3% 12.5% 3.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -12.1% 40.6% 30.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -1.2% 13.3% 7.4%
Operating income growth (1Y) -240.9% 200.1% 273.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 9.9% 29.1% 3.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 143.2% 364.5% 290.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 33.0% 43.5% 4.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 142.6% 359.9% 287.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 32.7% 44.8% 7.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -122.3% 34.5% 24.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -50.8% 201.2% 41.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -155.4% 34.5% 19.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -90.6% 95.4% 62.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricRBBNCIENCALX
Gross margin 48.3% 44.1% 56.6%
EBITDA margin 4.0% 14.9% 7.1%
Operating margin -3.6% 12.3% 5.5%
Pretax margin -8.9% 12.1% 6.5%
Net margin 2.3% 10.9% 4.6%
FCF margin -3.6% 13.5% 7.7%
Operating cash flow margin -2.3% 17.5% 9.9%
Return on equity 4.8% 22.0% 7.1%
Return on assets 1.6% 9.3% 5.4%
Return on invested capital 0.0% 12.4% –
Return on capital employed -3.5% 13.1% 8.2%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.9x 1.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -1.0x 1.6x 2.1x
Stock comp / revenue 2.7% 3.5% 7.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricRBBNCIENCALX
Debt / assets 29.8% 40.4% –
Debt / equity 0.9x 1.1x –
Net debt / EBITDA 9.4x 0.7x –
Debt / FCF -11.8x 4.0x –
Liabilities / assets 66.2% 61.8% 25.6%
Equity / assets 33.8% 38.2% 74.4%
Interest coverage – 10.6x –
Current ratio 1.3x 3.8x 2.8x
Quick ratio 1.1x 2.8x 1.6x
Cash ratio 0.1x 1.9x 0.9x
Altman Z-score -1.00 6.09 6.95

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricRBBNCIENCALX
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield 1.4% -1.2% 8.4%
Shareholder yield 1.4% -1.2% 8.4%
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.

ConsensusRBBNCIENCALX
Forward P/E 31.6xFY2026 39.5xFY2026 20.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.05FY2026 $7.60FY2026 $1.62FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -92.4%FY2026 +187.9%FY2026 +20.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +200.0% +64.7% +48.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $790.52MFY2026 $6.86BFY2026 $1.11BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -6.4%FY2026 +43.8%FY2026 +11.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +11.9% +18.0% +18.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersRBBNCIENCALX
Held by institutions 71.8% 92.9% 94.5%
Institutions holding 161 1,222 290
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.7% -1.7% +0.5%
Institutions buying 88 731 148
Institutions selling 41 379 111
Buyers to sellers 2.15 1.93 1.33

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.

RBBNCIENCALX
RBBN 1.00 0.23 0.14
CIEN 0.23 1.00 0.25
CALX 0.14 0.25 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, RBBN, CIEN and CALX?

Ciena (CIEN) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ribbon Communications (RBBN) $274.55M, Ciena (CIEN) $39.21B, Calix (CALX) $2.10B.

Which stock is cheaper, RBBN, CIEN and CALX?

Ribbon Communications (RBBN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 14.8x, Ciena (CIEN) 59.9x, Calix (CALX) 46.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Calix (CALX) is cheapest (Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 31.6x, Ciena (CIEN) 39.5x, Calix (CALX) 20.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Ciena (CIEN) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ribbon Communications (RBBN) -7.8%, Ciena (CIEN) +32.6%, Calix (CALX) +27.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Ciena (CIEN) has the highest net margin (Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 2.3%, Ciena (CIEN) 10.9%, Calix (CALX) 4.6%). On return on invested capital, Ciena (CIEN) leads (Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 0.0%, Ciena (CIEN) 12.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ciena (CIEN) returned the most: Ribbon Communications (RBBN) -51.8%, Ciena (CIEN) +49.7%, Calix (CALX) -47.1%. Over five years, Ciena (CIEN) compounded fastest (Ribbon Communications (RBBN) -23.0%/yr, Ciena (CIEN) +36.4%/yr, Calix (CALX) -13.0%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Calix (CALX) has been the steadiest (Ribbon Communications (RBBN) 69.7%, Ciena (CIEN) 79.6%, Calix (CALX) 40.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, RBBN, CIEN and CALX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Ciena (CIEN) leads on 7. 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.