Arista Networks vs Cisco Systems
ANET and CSCO side by side, both in computer and office equipment. Figures are trailing twelve months unless noted, from SEC filings and end-of-day prices.
How ANET and CSCO compare
Cisco Systems is the larger company, worth 1.9 times as much as Arista Networks ($412B against $213B).
On earnings, Cisco Systems is cheaper: it trades at 31.4× trailing earnings, against 53.3× for Arista Networks.
Arista Networks grew revenue faster over the last twelve months (32.6% versus 11.8% for Cisco Systems).
Arista Networks keeps more of each dollar of sales as profit, with a net margin of 38.4% compared with 21.0% at Cisco Systems.
Cisco Systems pays a dividend yielding 1.6%; Arista Networks does not pay one.
Cisco Systems scores higher on the StockData Score (16 against 15 for Arista Networks), which adds up 30 checks on valuation, growth, past performance, financial health and dividends.
Key numbers
A dot marks the better figure where higher or lower is clearly better.
| Metric | ANET | CSCO |
|---|---|---|
| Size and price | ||
| Market cap | $213B | $412B |
| Share price | $168.86 | $104.51 |
| Change, 1 year | 4.2% | 46.5% |
| Change, 5 years | 409% | 83.1% |
| Beta (5Y) | 1.66 | 0.82 |
| Employees | 5,115 | 25K |
| StockData Score | ||
| Total score | 15 | 16 (better) |
| Valuation score | 0 | 0 |
| Growth score | 3 | 3 |
| Performance score | 6 | 6 |
| Health score | 6 (better) | 3 |
| Dividend score | 0 | 4 (better) |
| Valuation | ||
| P/E | 53.3× | 31.4× (better) |
| P/S | 20.2× | 6.5× (better) |
| P/B | 14.4× | 8.2× (better) |
| EV/EBITDA | 43.0× | 27.8× (better) |
| P/FCF | 41.3× | 32.3× (better) |
| PEG | 1.44 (better) | 11.43 |
| FCF yield | 2.4% | 3.1% (better) |
| Fair value | $115.97 | $67.84 |
| Margin of safety | −45.6% (better) | −54.1% |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth (TTM) | 32.6% (better) | 11.8% |
| Revenue growth, 5Y average | 31.2% (better) | 4.9% |
| Net income growth (TTM) | 24.4% | 30.3% (better) |
| EPS growth (TTM) | 24.8% | 30.6% (better) |
| EPS growth, 5Y average | 40.6% (better) | 5.9% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 63.0% | 64.5% (better) |
| Operating margin | 43.1% (better) | 24.3% |
| Net margin | 38.4% (better) | 21.0% |
| FCF margin | 48.9% (better) | 20.2% |
| Return on equity | 31.5% (better) | 27.3% |
| Return on invested capital | 210% (better) | 20.2% |
| Financial health | ||
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 0.59 (better) |
| Net debt / EBITDA | – | 0.99 |
| Interest coverage | – | 10.5× |
| Current ratio | 2.96 (better) | 0.93 |
| Altman Z-score | 16.76 (better) | 3.99 |
| Piotroski F-score | 5 | 7 (better) |
| Dividends and buybacks | ||
| Dividend yield | – | 1.6% |
| Payout ratio | – | 49.4% |
| Years of dividend growth | – | 15 |
| Dividend growth, 5Y average | – | 2.6% |
| Buyback yield | 0.29% | 1.3% (better) |
| Shareholder yield | 0.29% | 2.9% (better) |
| Ownership | ||
| Held by institutions | 71.4% | 80.6% |
| Held by insiders | 16.7% | 0.07% |
| Insider net buying, 12 months | −$1.3B | −$106M (better) |
| Superinvestors holding | 1 | 3 (better) |
| Short interest, % of float | 1.1% | 1.3% |
Go deeper
- ANET stock overview
- ANET income statement
- ANET valuation and score
- CSCO stock overview
- CSCO income statement
- CSCO valuation and score
Other comparisons
For information only, not investment advice. Check the source filings before relying on any figure.