CEVA vs ARM Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
ARM is the dominant global semiconductor IP company licensing processor architectures in virtually every mobile device and increasingly in servers and AI chips, while CEVA is a smaller, more specialized IP licensor focused on DSP architectures and wireless connectivity IP (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi). Both operate the high-margin IP licensing model but at very different scales and in different application domains.
CEVA vs ARM compares semiconductor IP licensing at different scales and specializations — CEVA's niche wireless connectivity and DSP IP versus ARM's dominant general-purpose processor architecture franchises.
ARM holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. ARM has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+33.07% vs -3.37%), though CEVA has the better forward P/E setup (32.58x vs 74.38x for ARM). ARM leads on both revenue growth (22.40%) and operating margin (7.60%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for CEVA (+82.22%) than for ARM (+27.61%).
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 smaller-scale semiconductor IP exposure to wireless connectivity (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi) and DSP technology for IoT and audio applications
- Value CEVA's specialized wireless IP as a defensible niche in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chip design that complements rather than competes with ARM
- See IoT device proliferation as driving growing demand for CEVA's low-power wireless connectivity IP licensing
- Want exposure to the dominant global semiconductor processor IP company with royalties on virtually every smartphone shipped
- Value ARM's expanding server and AI processor royalty opportunity as its architecture displaces x86 in higher-margin applications
- See ARM's near-monopoly architecture position as providing pricing power as chips become more sophisticated and royalty rates increase
| Metric | CEVA | ARM |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 25.5 | 49.3 |
| AI ranki | #1838 | #382 |
| Latest closei | $27.50 | $227.80 |
| 1M returni | -1.11% | -6.63% |
| 3M returni | -27.57% | -14.74% |
| 6M returni | +17.42% | +36.63% |
| 1Y returni | -3.37% | +33.07% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | CEVA | ARM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $9.66K (-3.4%) started 2025-10-16 | $13.31K (+33.1%) started 2025-10-16 |
| 5Y ago | $6.49K (-35.1%) started 2021-10-18 | $35.82K (+258.2%) started 2023-09-14 |
| 10Y ago | $9K (-10.0%) started 2016-10-17 | $35.82K (+258.2%) started 2023-09-14 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | CEVA | ARM |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $730.04M | $243.29B |
| Trailing P/Ei | N/A | 234.85 |
| Forward P/Ei | 32.58 | 74.38 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | 47.19 |
| EV/Revenuei | 4.62 | 46.53 |
| Analyst targeti | $47.25 | $290.71 |
| Target upsidei | +82.22% | +27.61% |
| Metric | CEVA | ARM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 13.10% | 22.40% |
| Earnings growthi | N/A | 108.30% |
| EPS growthi | N/A | +108.30% |
| FCF margini | +4.85% | +25.88% |
| Operating margini | -7.15% | 7.60% |
| Profit margini | -9.48% | 20.25% |
| ROIC proxyi | -3.62% | 13.35% |
| Return on equityi | -3.62% | 13.35% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | 0.00% |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 2.01 | 3.79 |
| Debt/equityi | 5.12 | 5.62 |
| Current ratioi | 10.12 | 5.25 |
| Quick ratioi | 9.56 | 5.06 |
Over the past year, CEVA and ARM have moved moderately in the same direction (correlation of 0.64), 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 | CEVA | ARM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -3.37% | +33.07% |
| CAGRi | -3.38% | +33.09% | |
| Volatilityi | 74.16% | 79.28% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.26 | 0.69 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.38 | 1.13 | |
| Max drawdowni | 47.60% | 48.83% | |
| Current drawdowni | 45.07% | 48.16% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 22.15% | 25.72% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 25.86% | 29.29% | |
| Max daily dropi | 17.46% | 12.84% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 31.00% | 25.35% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | -35.06% | +258.23% |
| CAGRi | -8.28% | +51.16% | |
| Volatilityi | 57.53% | 77.14% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.06 | 0.85 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.08 | 1.41 | |
| Max drawdowni | 68.00% | 53.97% | |
| Current drawdowni | 45.44% | 48.16% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 44.25% | 22.83% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 46.80% | 26.00% | |
| Max daily dropi | 20.17% | 19.46% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 31.00% | 30.98% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | -9.98% | +258.23% |
| CAGRi | -1.05% | +51.16% | |
| Volatilityi | 52.69% | 77.14% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.16 | 0.85 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.23 | 1.41 | |
| Max drawdowni | 78.24% | 53.97% | |
| Current drawdowni | 62.89% | 48.16% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 45.53% | 22.83% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 50.56% | 26.00% | |
| Max daily dropi | 20.17% | 19.46% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 31.00% | 30.98% |
| Category | CEVA | ARM |
|---|---|---|
| Company | CEVA, Inc. | Arm Holdings plc |
| Sector | Technology | Technology - Semiconductor IP |
| Industry | Semiconductors | Semiconductors |
| Core business | CEVA licenses digital signal processor (DSP) IP architectures and wireless connectivity IP (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, UWB) to semiconductor companies and OEMs designing chips for smartphones, IoT devices, and industrial applications, earning royalties on every chip shipped using CEVA's technology. | Arm Holdings licenses its RISC-based processor IP to semiconductor companies globally, with its ARM architecture powering virtually every smartphone (iPhone, Android), most connected devices, and increasingly servers and edge AI processors — earning royalties on billions of chips shipped annually. |
| Investor focus | Investors track CEVA's semiconductor royalty revenue, wireless connectivity IP licensing deals, and the adoption of its BlueWave Wi-Fi and RivieraWaves Bluetooth IP across IoT device chip designs. | Investors track Arm's royalty revenues tied to chip volumes and average royalty rates, licensing revenues from new architecture customers, and the strategic expansion of Arm's architecture into server (AWS Graviton, Ampere) and AI processor applications. |
- Dominant position in DSP IP for Bluetooth audio and wireless connectivity — CEVA's wireless IP is licensed in a large share of the global Bluetooth headset, speaker, and hearing aid chip market
- Asset-light IP licensing model earns royalties with minimal variable cost, providing high operating leverage as licensed volume grows
- IoT device proliferation creates growing demand for low-power wireless connectivity IP where CEVA's BlueWave and RivieraWaves have established positions
- Near-monopoly in mobile processor architecture — essentially every smartphone in the world uses ARM-based processors, creating an unmatched royalty base
- Royalty rates are expanding toward newer, more sophisticated chip designs that earn higher per-chip fees
- AI compute expansion — Arm is gaining traction in server and AI accelerator chips that can pay much higher royalties than mobile phones
- CEVA's IP must continuously evolve to stay competitive with next-generation wireless standards (Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6) as the connectivity landscape evolves
- Dependence on semiconductor industry cycles — when chip production slows, royalty volumes and licensing revenue both decline
- ARM's expansion into AI edge processor IP could increase competition in some application areas where CEVA's DSP IP currently serves
- RISC-V is an open-source processor architecture alternative that some companies are adopting to reduce dependence on Arm licensing — longer-term competitive threat
- Arm's very high valuation post-SoftBank requires sustained royalty revenue growth to justify premium multiples
- Geopolitical risk — Arm licenses to customers globally including Chinese smartphone chipmakers, creating regulatory scrutiny in technology transfer contexts
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