COMPARE · Reviewed August 7, 2026
CIEN vs HPE
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CIEN scored 59.4, HPE scored 57.0 — CIEN leads.
Compare another set
CIEN
Ciena Corporation
59.4
$412.39 · $58.4B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
2.4
CIEN leads
HPE
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company
57
$53.22 · $70.5B
fundamentals as of
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CIEN
stronger →← stronger
HPE
62
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
45
84
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
83
40
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
50
CIEN and HPE split the three pillars evenly.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CIEN
HPE
$833mC+
FCF
$4.0bB
+30.6%A
Rev
+22.6%A-
0.55B
D/E
0.84C+
137.0xD
P/E
49.7xC+
0.67A-
PEG
0.85B+
Winner per row is the stronger grade in our model; a tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CIEN
HPE
275% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
19% above
~52%/yr
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~15%/yr
-80%
1-yr DCF upside
-29%
-73%
5-yr DCF upside
-16%
-61%
10-yr DCF upside
+8%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
CIEN
No notable signals flagged.
HPE
Why this score
- Raising its dividend
The companies
CIENCiena Corporation
Why now
Communication Equipment · market cap $58.4b. Down 35% from 52-week high of $637.51 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +31% — in hypergrowth territory. PEG 0.67 — 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 +37% 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. $58.4b 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 137.0x prices in sustained high growth — any quarter that disappoints triggers sharp re-rating. Down 35% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up. P/S 10.5x embeds aggressive forward growth — disappointing top-line guidance would compress the multiple hard.
HPEHewlett Packard Enterprise Company
Why now
Communication Equipment · market cap $70.5b. 17% off the 52-week high of $64.25. Revenue growing +23%, comfortably above the S&P median. PEG 0.85 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 19 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $65.56 (implying +23% upside).
Moat
Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income — non-cash charges (depreciation, intangible amortization) are holding down GAAP earnings while cash generation stays strong. $70.5b 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
Beta 1.44 implies above-market volatility — position-size to the drawdowns this name will produce in a market correction, not to its bull-case return. Trailing P/E 50x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates. Net margin 4.0% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first.
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.