Zebra Technologies Corp (NASDAQ: ZBRA)

Sector: Technology Industry: Communication Equipment CIK: 0000877212
Market Cap 13.26 Bn
P/B 3.70
P/E 31.65
P/S 2.46
ROIC (Qtr) 8.12
Div Yield % 0.00
Rev 1y % (Qtr) 10.57
Total Debt (Qtr) 2.66 Bn
Debt/Equity (Qtr) 0.74
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About

Zebra Technologies Corp, commonly known as Zebra, is a prominent player in the Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) industry. This company is a significant contributor to the AIDC market, which comprises mobile computing, data capture, radio frequency identification devices (RFID), barcode printing, and other workflow automation products and services. Zebra's offerings are geared towards helping customers and end-users streamline their workflows, resulting in enhanced productivity, optimized regulatory compliance, and improved customer...

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Investment thesis

Bull case

  • Robust free cash flow of 831M exceeds capital expenditure of 86M by 9.66x, indicating strong organic growth funding capability.
  • Retained earnings of 5.28B provide full 2.10x coverage of long-term debt 2.52B, indicating strong internal capital position.
  • Retained earnings of 5.28B provide strong 5.20x coverage of other current liabilities 1.02B, indicating earnings quality.
  • R&D investment of 593M represents healthy 0.70x of deferred revenue 842M, indicating strong future innovation pipeline.
  • Operating cash flow of 917M provides strong 4.29x coverage of operating expenses 214M, showing operational efficiency.

Bear case

  • Operating cash flow of 917M barely covers its investment activities of (1.46B), with a coverage ratio of -0.63, indicating heavy reliance on external financing for growth which may not be sustainable in a tighter credit environment.
  • With cash reserves of 125M against inventory of 729M, the 0.17 cash-to-inventory ratio suggests potential liquidity risks if inventory turnover slows, particularly concerning given current supply chain volatilities.
  • Investment activities of (1.46B) provide weak support for R&D spending of 593M, which is -2.45x, suggesting potentially insufficient investment in innovation relative to other capital deployment.
  • Cash reserves of 125M provide limited coverage of acquisition spending of (1.36B), which is -0.09x, suggesting aggressive expansion might strain liquidity if market conditions deteriorate.
  • Operating cash flow of 917M provides insufficient coverage of deferred revenue obligations of 842M, which is 1.09x, raising concerns about future service delivery capabilities.

Segments Breakdown of Revenue (2025)

Geographical Breakdown of Revenue (2025)

Peer comparison

Companies in the Communication Equipment
S.No. Ticker Company Market Cap P/E P/S Total Debt (Qtr)
1 CSCO Cisco Systems, Inc. 305.09 Bn 27.54 5.17 30.09 Bn
2 MSI Motorola Solutions, Inc. 76.26 Bn 35.40 6.53 9.63 Bn
3 CIEN Ciena Corp 42.86 Bn 347.51 8.99 1.58 Bn
4 UI Ubiquiti Inc. 42.08 Bn 47.35 14.16 0.11 Bn
5 LITE Lumentum Holdings Inc. 41.73 Bn 165.86 19.82 3.32 Bn
6 HPE Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co 28.79 Bn 7.76 1.03 22.37 Bn
7 ASTS AST SpaceMobile, Inc. 22.73 Bn -74.80 1,226.44 0.72 Bn
8 ZBRA Zebra Technologies Corp 13.26 Bn 31.65 2.46 2.66 Bn

Industry comparisons

Current Valuation Value Ind Avg Percentile
EV to Assets EV to Assets 1.71 2.66
EV to Cash from Ops. EV/CFO 15.85 14.95
EV to Debt EV to Debt 5.46 37.29
EV to EBIT EV/EBIT 21.75 201.55
EV to EBITDA EV/EBITDA 16.42 9.12
EV to Free Cash Flow [EV/FCF] EV/FCF 17.49 66.04
EV to Market Cap EV to Market Cap 1.10 1.10
EV to Revenue EV/Rev 2.69 32.52
Price to Book Value [P/B] P/B 3.70 6.31
Price to Earnings [P/E] P/E 31.65 12.21
Dividend Metrics Value Ind Avg Percentile
Dividend Coverage Ratio Dividend Coverage Ratio 0.00 0.64
Dividend Payout Ratio % Div Payout % (Qtr) 0.00 -19.58
Dividend per Basic Share Div per Share (Qtr) 0.00 0.23
FCF Dividend Payout Ratio % FCF Div Payout % (Qtr) 0.00 5.02
Interest Coverage Int. cover (Qtr) 6.19 -10.88
Growth Metrics Value Ind Avg Percentile
Capex Growth (1y) % Capex 1y % (Qtr) -45.76 -65.39
Cash and Equivalents Growth (1y) % Cash & Equiv 1y % (Qtr) -86.13 457.29
Dividend Growth (1y) % Dividend Growth (1y) % 0.00 1.57
EBIAT Growth (1y) % EBIAT 1y % (Qtr) -18.00 67.92
EBITDA Growth (1y) % EBITDA 1y % (Qtr) -3.17 -9.76
EBIT Growth (1y) % EBIT 1y % (Qtr) -8.87 67.42
EBT Growth (1y) % EBT 1y % (Qtr) -11.81 -72.72
EPS Growth (1y) % EPS 1y % (Qtr) -19.61 5.66
FCF Growth (1y) % FCF 1y % (Qtr) -12.89 -2.41
Gross Profit Growth (1y) % Gross Profit 1y % (Qtr) 7.46 36.14
Liquidity Ratios Value Ind Avg Percentile
Asset Utilization Ratio Asset Util Ratio (Qtr) 0.63 0.75
Cash Payout Ratio Cash Payout (Qtr) 0.00 0.03
Cash Ratio Cash Ratio (Qtr) 0.07 1.34
Current Ratio Curr Ratio (Qtr) 0.97 2.99
Debt to Equity Ratio Debt/Equity (Qtr) 0.74 0.46
Interest Cover Ratio Int Coverage (Qtr) 6.19 -10.88
Times Interest Earned Times Interest Earned (Qtr) 6.19 -10.88
Profitability Value Ind Avg Percentile
EBITDA Margin % EBITDA Margin % (Qtr) 15.80 -41.18
EBIT Margin % EBIT Margin % (Qtr) 12.38 -52.62
EBT Margin % EBT Margin % (Qtr) 10.38 -59.46
Gross Margin % Gross Margin % (Qtr) 48.10 38.53
Net Profit Margin % Net Margin % (Qtr) 7.80 -60.82