Ciena vs F5
Ciena is the larger business, with $4.77bn of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $3.09bn for F5 (1.5 times as much). Ciena grew faster (18.8% against 9.7%). F5 kept more of each dollar of sales as profit: a net margin of 22.4% against 2.6%. F5 carries less debt relative to equity (0.0% against 56.3%).
| Latest fiscal year | CienaCIEN, 2025 | F5FFIV, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $4.77bn | $3.09bn |
| Revenue growth | 18.8% | 9.7% |
| Net income | $123m | $692m |
| Operating margin | 4.1% | 24.8% |
| Net margin | 2.6% | 22.4% |
| Return on equity | 4.4% | 20.6% |
| Free cash flow | $665m | $906m |
| Cash | $1.09bn | $1.34bn |
| Total debt | $1.54bn | $0 |
| Debt to equity | 56.3% | 0.0% |
| Dividend per share | — | — |
| Dividend yield | — | — |
| Share buybacks | $335m | $502m |
| Employees | 9,080 | 6,578 |
| Market value | $40.35bn | $18.44bn |
| Price vs our value range | Above our value range | Within our value range |
| Moat score | 71 (Strong) | 82 (Strong) |
| Insider trades, 12 months | 0 buys, 90 sales | 0 buys, 97 sales |