COMPARE · Reviewed August 3, 2026
BDC vs CIEN
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. BDC scored 66.0, CIEN scored 59.6 — BDC leads.
Compare another set
BDC
Belden Inc.
66
$122.73 · $4.8B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
6.4
BDC leads
CIEN
Ciena Corporation
59.6
$390.76 · $55.3B
fundamentals as of
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
BDC
stronger →← stronger
CIEN
64
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
62
77
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
84
58
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
41
BDC is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
BDC
CIEN
$212mC
FCF
$833mC+
+9.4%B
Rev
+30.6%A
0.97C
D/E
0.55C+
19.9xB+
P/E
129.4xD
1.05B+
PEG
0.65A-
Winner per row is the stronger grade in our model; a tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
BDC
CIEN
25% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
255% above
~16%/yr
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~50%/yr
-32%
1-yr DCF upside
-78%
-20%
5-yr DCF upside
-72%
+2%
10-yr DCF upside
-59%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
The companies
BDCBelden Inc.
Why now
Communication Equipment · market cap $4.8b. Down 23% from 52-week high of $159.99 — deep drawdown territory. 4 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $152.75 (implying +24% upside).
Moat
ROE 18% sits above Buffett's preferred 15% threshold — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
Mature compounder — the risk is paying up for quality at a moment when growth is decelerating. Watch for sequential revenue + margin trends; the inflection from "compounder" to "ex-compounder" is hard to spot until the multiple already started compressing.
CIENCiena Corporation
Why now
Communication Equipment · market cap $55.3b. Down 39% from 52-week high of $637.51 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +31% — in hypergrowth territory. PEG 0.65 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 19 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $565.71 (implying +45% upside).
Moat
ROE 15% sits above Buffett's preferred 15% threshold — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 190% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined. $55.3b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Trailing P/E 129.4x prices in sustained high growth — any quarter that disappoints triggers sharp re-rating. Down 39% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.