UI vs CIEN vs AAOI Stock Comparison

Ubiquiti, Ciena and Applied Optoelectronics Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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UI Ubiquiti Inc.
$562.41 -7.7% 1M -25.9% 1Y
Market cap
$34.04B
P/E
35.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.27B
Div. yield
0.60%
Networking Equipment Technology
6 wins
CIEN Ciena Corp
$271.66 -30.3% 1M +48.6% 1Y
Market cap
$38.55B
P/E
59.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.02B
Div. yield
–
Networking Equipment Technology
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Ubiquiti leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Ubiquiti 6, Applied Optoelectronics 3, Ciena 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionUICIENAAOILeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $34.04B $38.55B $5.00B CIEN
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 35.4x 59.0x -84.8x UI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 29.8x 35.7x 83.5x UI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +27.2% +32.6% +61.8% AAOI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 29.3% 10.9% -9.6% UI
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 72.8% 12.4% -4.2% UI
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 0.7x 13.8x CIEN
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.60% — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -25.9% +48.6% +100.9% AAOI
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +12.7%/yr +35.1%/yr +58.9%/yr AAOI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 54.4% 80.1% 139.7% UI
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 67/100 55/100 32/100 UI

Percentile Scorecard

UICIENAAOI

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

AxisUICIENAAOI
Valuation 26 #83 of 112 23 #87 of 112 13 #98 of 112
Growth 88 #14 of 108 94 #7 of 108 53 #51 of 108
Profitability 98 #3 of 104 82 #20 of 104 17 #87 of 104
Financial Health 74 #31 of 116 41 #69 of 116 70 #35 of 116
Shareholder Returns 48 #45 of 85 35 #56 of 85 7 #79 of 85
Overall 67 55 32
  • UI ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • CIEN ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware
  • AAOI ranked among 121 companies in Computer Hardware

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodUICIENAAOISPY
1 month -7.7%-30.3%-51.2% -1.0%
3 months -1.0%-33.6%-53.9% -0.4%
6 months -45.3%-52.9%-66.8% +4.5%
Year to date +1.6%+16.2%+70.0% +12.4%
1 year -25.9%+48.6%+100.9% +13.6%
3 years +428.8%+518.8%+525.9% +76.4%
3 years, per year +74.3%+83.7%+84.4% +20.8%
5 years +82.1%+349.0%+911.4% +63.7%
5 years, per year +12.7%+35.1%+58.9% +10.4%
10 years +951.2%+1,311.2%+173.8% +267.7%
10 years, per year +26.5%+30.3%+10.6% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureUICIENAAOISPY
Volatility, 1Y 54.4%80.1%139.7% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 60.8%86.6%128.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.712.764.28 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.480.610.72 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -70.0%-56.7%-77.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -48.1%-56.7%-73.4% -1.6%
52-week high $1,084.50$627.00$223.10 $779.14
52-week low $515.44$176.45$19.49 $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.

MultipleUICIENAAOI
P/E now vs peer median 35.4xmedian 28.1x 59.0xmedian 28.1x -84.8xmedian 28.1x
P/S now vs peer median 10.4xmedian 2.6x 6.4xmedian 2.6x 8.4xmedian 2.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 27.7xmedian 18.4x 43.6xmedian 18.4x -142.0xmedian 18.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 37.4xmedian 26.6x 47.3xmedian 26.6x -8.3xmedian 26.6x
P/B now vs peer median 23.6xmedian 2.8x 12.6xmedian 2.8x 3.0xmedian 2.8x
PEG now vs peer median 1.07median 1.11 1.32median 1.11 -2.55median 1.11

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 monthsUICIENAAOI
Revenue $3.27B $6.02B $595.97M
Gross profit $1.51B $2.65B $172.33M
Operating income $1.19B $738.95M -$67.41M
Net income $960.30M $654.41M -$57.02M
Free cash flow $908.94M $814.36M -$600.81M
R&D $204.17M $924.94M $107.61M
EPS (diluted) $15.85 $4.48 $-0.70
Cash & equivalents $522.58M $2.45B $499.74M
Total debt – $3.23B $57.26M
Shares (diluted) 60.57M 145.97M 81.57M
Enterprise value $32.58B $32.11B $3.72B

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
MetricUICIENAAOI
P/E 35.4x 59.0x -84.8x
P/FCF 37.4x 47.3x -8.3x
P/Operating cash flow 36.7x 36.5x -37.9x
P/S 10.4x 6.4x 8.4x
P/B 23.6x 12.6x 3.0x
P/Tangible book 23.6x 13.4x 3.0x
EV/EBITDA 27.7x 43.6x -142.0x
EV/EBIT 28.2x 53.0x -67.6x
EV/Revenue 10.2x 6.5x 7.6x
EV/FCF 36.8x 48.1x -7.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 36.0x 37.1x -34.6x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.07 1.32 -2.55

Growth

14 metrics
MetricUICIENAAOI
Revenue growth (1Y) 27.2% 32.6% 61.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 19.0% 12.5% 40.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 35.3% 40.6% 62.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 25.7% 13.3% 73.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 41.8% 200.1% -40.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 29.6% 29.1% -2.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 34.9% 364.5% 63.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 33.1% 43.5% 6.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 34.8% 359.9% 74.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 33.0% 44.8% 33.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 45.1% 34.5% 15.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 103.2% 201.2% -168.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 44.9% 34.5% -146.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 95.4% 95.4% -294.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricUICIENAAOI
Gross margin 46.2% 44.1% 28.9%
EBITDA margin 36.8% 14.9% -5.4%
Operating margin 36.2% 12.3% -11.3%
Pretax margin 36.1% 12.1% -10.6%
Net margin 29.3% 10.9% -9.6%
FCF margin 27.8% 13.5% -100.8%
Operating cash flow margin 28.4% 17.5% -22.1%
Return on equity 72.7% 22.0% -4.1%
Return on assets 49.1% 9.3% -2.9%
Return on invested capital 72.8% 12.4% -4.2%
Return on capital employed 89.1% 13.1% -4.5%
Asset turnover 1.7x 0.9x 0.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.0x 1.6x 2.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.2% 3.5% 2.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricUICIENAAOI
Debt / assets – 40.4% 2.5%
Debt / equity – 1.1x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA – 0.7x 13.8x
Debt / FCF – 4.0x -0.1x
Liabilities / assets 34.5% 61.8% 27.5%
Equity / assets 65.5% 38.2% 72.5%
Interest coverage – 10.6x -19.1x
Current ratio 2.9x 3.8x 2.8x
Quick ratio 1.5x 2.8x 1.9x
Cash ratio 1.0x 1.9x 1.2x
Altman Z-score 31.78 5.88 4.98

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricUICIENAAOI
Dividend yield 0.6% – –
Net buyback yield – -1.3% -27.0%
Shareholder yield 0.6% -1.3% -27.0%
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.

ConsensusUICIENAAOI
Forward P/E 29.8xFY2027 35.7xFY2026 83.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $18.88FY2027 $7.60FY2026 $0.71FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +18.4%FY2027 +187.9%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +9.2% +64.7% +646.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $4.12BFY2027 $6.86BFY2026 $994.70MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +25.9%FY2027 +43.8%FY2026 +118.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +5.9% +18.0% +185.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersUICIENAAOI
Held by institutions 4.9% 93.0% 60.5%
Institutions holding 356 1,224 482
Change in shares held, QoQ +8.0% -1.7% -3.5%
Institutions buying 163 733 313
Institutions selling 139 379 144
Buyers to sellers 1.17 1.93 2.17

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.

UICIENAAOI
UI 1.00 0.42 0.32
CIEN 0.42 1.00 0.60
AAOI 0.32 0.60 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, UI, CIEN and AAOI?

Ciena (CIEN) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ubiquiti (UI) $34.04B, Ciena (CIEN) $38.55B, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) $5.00B.

Which stock is cheaper, UI, CIEN and AAOI?

Ubiquiti (UI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ubiquiti (UI) 35.4x, Ciena (CIEN) 59.0x, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) -84.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Ubiquiti (UI) is cheapest (Ubiquiti (UI) 29.8x, Ciena (CIEN) 35.7x, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) 83.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ubiquiti (UI) +27.2%, Ciena (CIEN) +32.6%, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) +61.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Ubiquiti (UI) has the highest net margin (Ubiquiti (UI) 29.3%, Ciena (CIEN) 10.9%, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) -9.6%). On return on invested capital, Ubiquiti (UI) leads (Ubiquiti (UI) 72.8%, Ciena (CIEN) 12.4%, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) -4.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) returned the most: Ubiquiti (UI) -25.9%, Ciena (CIEN) +48.6%, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) +100.9%. Over five years, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) compounded fastest (Ubiquiti (UI) +12.7%/yr, Ciena (CIEN) +35.1%/yr, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) +58.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Ubiquiti (UI) 0.60%. Ciena (CIEN) and Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ubiquiti (UI) has been the steadiest (Ubiquiti (UI) 54.4%, Ciena (CIEN) 80.1%, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) 139.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, UI, CIEN and AAOI?

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