ANET vs CIEN Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
ANET and CIEN both sell networking equipment but solve different problems. Arista connects servers and accelerators inside data centres, where AI cluster spending is currently most intense and where its software gives it a defensible position. Ciena connects data centres and networks over distance, a market driven by cloud interconnect and by telecom carrier budgets. Arista has the stronger growth and margin profile; Ciena is the more diversified and typically cheaper of the two.
Use this ANET vs CIEN comparison to decide whether you want inside-the-building or between-buildings networking exposure. AI capital spending has concentrated most intensely inside the data centre, favouring Arista. Ciena participates through interconnect but is also tied to carrier spending cycles that move to a different rhythm entirely.
CIEN holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. CIEN leads on both 1-year return (+157.85%) and forward P/E quality (36.24x vs 38.68x for ANET), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. On fundamentals, CIEN is growing revenue faster (39.50%), while ANET maintains the higher operating margin (45.39%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for CIEN (+57.51%) than for ANET (+20.77%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want the most direct exposure to AI data centre network buildouts
- Value software differentiation and high, consistent margins
- Prefer a debt-free balance sheet and strong free cash flow
- Accept hyperscaler concentration and a premium valuation
- Want optical transport and data centre interconnect exposure
- Value proprietary coherent DSP technology as a differentiator
- Prefer a more diversified customer base across carriers and content providers
- Accept slower growth in exchange for a generally lower valuation
| Metric | ANET | CIEN |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 75.2 | 80.0 |
| AI ranki | #22 | #13 |
| Latest closei | $206.55 | $356.91 |
| 1M returni | +2.13% | -11.66% |
| 6M returni | +71.03% | -11.13% |
| 1Y returni | +44.81% | +157.85% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | ANET | CIEN |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $14.44K (+44.4%) started 2025-09-25 | $26.02K (+160.2%) started 2025-09-25 |
| 5Y ago | $92.63K (+826.3%) started 2021-09-27 | $67.93K (+579.3%) started 2021-09-27 |
| 10Y ago | $388.39K (+3783.9%) started 2016-09-26 | $162.01K (+1520.1%) started 2016-09-26 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | ANET | CIEN |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $251.73B | $49.6B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 63.36 | 117.18 |
| Forward P/Ei | 38.68 | 36.24 |
| Price/Salesi | 16.42 | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 22.61 | 9.23 |
| Analyst targeti | $241.04 | $551.86 |
| Target upsidei | +20.77% | +57.51% |
| Metric | ANET | CIEN |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 37.70% | 39.50% |
| Earnings growthi | 35.70% | 2383.30% |
| EPS growthi | +35.70% | +2383.30% |
| FCF margini | +36.92% | +12.59% |
| Operating margini | 45.39% | 15.20% |
| Profit margini | 38.37% | 7.87% |
| ROIC proxyi | 31.48% | 15.46% |
| Return on equityi | 31.48% | 15.46% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | N/A |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 1.62 | 1.31 |
| Debt/equityi | 0.73 | 54.65 |
| Current ratioi | 2.96 | 2.73 |
| Quick ratioi | 2.29 | 1.85 |
Over the past year, ANET and CIEN have moved moderately in the same direction (correlation of 0.48), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | ANET | CIEN |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +44.38% | +160.20% |
| CAGRi | +44.46% | +160.55% | |
| Volatilityi | 54.05% | 72.41% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.87 | 1.63 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.26 | 2.37 | |
| Max drawdowni | 28.33% | 49.37% | |
| Current drawdowni | 1.88% | 43.08% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 11.66% | 13.53% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 13.95% | 20.83% | |
| Max daily dropi | 13.61% | 13.66% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 20.97% | 29.94% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +826.26% | +579.31% |
| CAGRi | +56.15% | +46.76% | |
| Volatilityi | 48.83% | 51.51% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 1.07 | 0.92 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.60 | 1.36 | |
| Max drawdowni | 50.42% | 49.54% | |
| Current drawdowni | 1.88% | 43.08% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 11.59% | 25.61% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 15.68% | 30.24% | |
| Max daily dropi | 22.35% | 21.04% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 20.97% | 29.94% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +3783.89% | +1520.11% |
| CAGRi | +44.20% | +32.13% | |
| Volatilityi | 45.57% | 45.72% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.94 | 0.74 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.37 | 1.12 | |
| Max drawdowni | 52.20% | 49.54% | |
| Current drawdowni | 1.88% | 43.08% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 13.50% | 18.28% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 18.30% | 23.44% | |
| Max daily dropi | 24.23% | 24.32% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 24.17% | 32.45% |
| Category | ANET | CIEN |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Arista Networks, Inc. | Ciena Corporation |
| Sector | Technology | Technology |
| Industry | Computer Hardware | Communication Equipment |
| Core business | Supplier of high-speed Ethernet switching systems unified by the EOS operating system, sold primarily into cloud and AI data centre networks, with growing enterprise and campus business. | Supplier of optical transport systems and network software built on its own coherent DSPs, serving telecom carriers, content providers, and cloud operators connecting data centres over distance. |
| Investor focus | AI back-end network deployments, hyperscaler spending, gross margin by mix, and enterprise diversification. | Cloud and content provider orders, carrier capital spending, DSP generation leadership, and margin mix. |
- Single consistent network operating system across platforms is a strong switching cost for customers
- Leading position as Ethernet takes share in AI training cluster networks
- Consistently high margins, strong profitability, and a net cash balance sheet
- Proprietary coherent DSP technology provides real differentiation in capacity and reach
- Data centre interconnect demand grows as AI workloads are distributed across sites
- Diversified across carriers, content providers, and enterprises
- Heavy revenue concentration in a few hyperscale customers
- AI deal mix can carry lower gross margin than enterprise business
- In-house switching development at large cloud operators is a long-term threat
- Carrier capital spending cycles can suppress revenue for extended periods
- Lower structural growth and margins than leading data centre switching
- Pluggable coherent optics may move value out of dedicated transport platforms
Compare more than two at a time
This page is a fixed writeup on ANET and CIEN. Our comparison engine is the interactive version: load up to five tickers, switch timeframes, and get the correlation, drawdown, and overlap analysis that a static page can't show.
Add three more names beside ANET and CIEN, mixing stocks and ETFs in the same table — useful when the real question is which of a whole peer group to own.
AI score, forward P/E, analyst target upside, operating margin, and revenue growth are scored head-to-head, with a running tally of which ticker leads on how many metrics.
Volatility, Sharpe and Sortino ratios, maximum, current, and average drawdown, Ulcer Index, and worst single-day and single-week drops across every timeframe.
Pairwise daily-return correlation for every combination, so you can see whether two holdings actually diversify each other or just move together.
A scatter plot of forward P/E against return on equity, plus drawdown and 30-day rolling volatility charts, to separate what is cheap from what is merely beaten down.
For ETFs, a top-holdings comparison that exposes hidden overlap between funds. Every comparison exports to CSV for your own spreadsheet work.
Two comparisons a week are free without an account. A 14-day trial removes the limit and adds AI price forecasts, stock rankings, saved watchlists, and the intrinsic value calculator — no credit card required.
Want deeper AI forecasts?
This comparison page is public and free forever. Subscribers can unlock saved watchlists, full AI rankings, detailed forecasts, and interactive analysis tools.
Full valuation workup with AI Score, Monte Carlo forecast, and bull/bear case — free preview, premium data from $3.99.