NDAQ vs CBOE Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
NDAQ (Nasdaq) is pivoting toward SaaS-based financial technology with recurring subscription revenue while retaining its technology-listings franchise, while CBOE (Cboe Global Markets) dominates options and derivatives trading with VIX and SPX options as its key franchises. Nasdaq is the tech-listings and financial software play; Cboe is the options and volatility market leader.
NDAQ vs CBOE is technology-listings and financial SaaS pivoting exchange versus dominant options and volatility derivatives market operator — Nasdaq's recurring technology revenue build-out against Cboe's structurally growing options trading franchise.
NDAQ holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. CBOE leads on both 1-year return (+33.48%) and forward P/E quality (20.37x vs 21.23x for NDAQ), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. On fundamentals, CBOE is growing revenue faster (22.90%), while NDAQ maintains the higher operating margin (49.33%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for NDAQ (+10.56%) than for CBOE (+1.51%).
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 a financial technology and data company with the Nasdaq exchange franchise and a growing SaaS-based financial technology business reducing dependence on volatile transaction revenues
- Value Nasdaq's technology listings franchise and Nasdaq-100 brand as durable competitive assets creating data licensing and ETF revenue
- See Nasdaq's Adenza acquisition as expanding its financial crime and compliance software capabilities into a growing regulatory technology market
- Want the dominant options exchange operator with VIX and SPX options franchises generating structurally growing volume as retail and institutional options usage expands
- Value Cboe's proprietary index licensing fees (VIX, SPX) as a high-margin revenue stream tied to growing derivatives market activity
- See 0DTE (zero days to expiration) options volume growth as a sustained structural trend expanding the addressable market for Cboe's options franchises
| Metric | NDAQ | CBOE |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 51.8 | 51.4 |
| AI ranki | #389 | #439 |
| Latest closei | $93.97 | $314.98 |
| 1M returni | +5.87% | +16.47% |
| 3M returni | +2.54% | +15.20% |
| 6M returni | +6.05% | +5.01% |
| 1Y returni | +6.86% | +33.48% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | NDAQ | CBOE |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $10.61K (+6.1%) started 2025-10-17 | $13.14K (+31.4%) started 2025-10-17 |
| 5Y ago | $15.32K (+53.2%) started 2021-10-18 | $26.55K (+165.5%) started 2021-10-18 |
| 10Y ago | $56.61K (+466.1%) started 2016-10-17 | $61.5K (+515.0%) started 2016-10-17 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | NDAQ | CBOE |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $55.51B | $32.42B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 28.95 | 23.94 |
| Forward P/Ei | 21.23 | 20.37 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 11.45 | 6.25 |
| Analyst targeti | $109.80 | $315.14 |
| Target upsidei | +10.56% | +1.51% |
| Metric | NDAQ | CBOE |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 14.90% | 22.90% |
| Earnings growthi | 14.10% | 50.20% |
| EPS growthi | +14.10% | +50.20% |
| FCF margini | +30.13% | +13.40% |
| Operating margini | 49.33% | 34.63% |
| Profit margini | 35.04% | 26.73% |
| ROIC proxyi | 16.52% | 26.30% |
| Return on equityi | 16.52% | 26.30% |
| Dividend yieldi | 1.17% | 1.11% |
| Payout ratioi | 32.65% | 22.45% |
| Dividend growth streaki | No increase yet | 9 yrs |
| Betai | 0.97 | 0.41 |
| Debt/equityi | 77.69 | 28.09 |
| Current ratioi | 1.01 | 1.56 |
| Quick ratioi | 0.39 | 0.79 |
Over the past year, NDAQ and CBOE have moved weakly in the same direction (correlation of 0.29), 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 | NDAQ | CBOE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +6.07% | +31.45% |
| CAGRi | +6.09% | +31.56% | |
| Volatilityi | 27.58% | 35.22% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.19 | 0.83 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.25 | 1.16 | |
| Max drawdowni | 23.90% | 36.87% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.94% | 14.10% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 8.68% | 10.43% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 10.57% | 15.00% | |
| Max daily dropi | 9.40% | 9.76% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 12.82% | 22.26% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +45.61% | +156.28% |
| CAGRi | +7.81% | +20.73% | |
| Volatilityi | 24.76% | 25.03% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.25 | 0.70 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.34 | 1.00 | |
| Max drawdowni | 32.84% | 36.87% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.94% | 14.10% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 12.30% | 6.67% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 15.05% | 9.49% | |
| Max daily dropi | 11.81% | 9.76% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 12.82% | 22.26% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +387.75% | +453.44% |
| CAGRi | +17.17% | +18.66% | |
| Volatilityi | 24.69% | 26.33% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.59 | 0.61 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.83 | 0.86 | |
| Max drawdowni | 38.31% | 42.59% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.94% | 14.10% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 8.09% | 11.18% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 11.43% | 15.35% | |
| Max daily dropi | 11.81% | 14.33% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 21.95% | 28.68% |
| Category | NDAQ | CBOE |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Nasdaq, Inc. | Cboe Global Markets, Inc. |
| Sector | Financial Services | Financial Services |
| Industry | Financial Data & Stock Exchanges | Financial Data & Stock Exchanges |
| Core business | Nasdaq operates global capital markets technology — including equity exchanges (Nasdaq Stock Market), financial technology products (market surveillance, trading systems), and market intelligence data and analytics — while also operating the Nasdaq Indices (including the NASDAQ-100). | Cboe Global Markets is the world's largest options exchange operator, running markets for equity options (including VIX options), index options (S&P 500 options — SPX), futures, equities, and FX — operating globally including European and Asia-Pacific markets. |
| Investor focus | Investors track Nasdaq's Solutions segments (SaaS-based financial technology revenues), Market Platforms revenue, market data and analytics subscriptions, the integration of Adenza (financial crime management software), and the ratio of recurring subscription revenue to transaction-based revenue. | Investors track Cboe's options volume (particularly SPX index options and VIX products), net revenue per contract, global expansion into equities and data, and the cyclical tailwind from elevated market volatility driving options trading activity. |
- Technology-listings leadership — Nasdaq lists most major technology companies (Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, NVIDIA) making it the default home for tech IPOs
- Financial technology solutions segment (market surveillance, risk management, anti-financial crime) provides high-growth SaaS revenue streams beyond traditional exchange transaction fees
- Nasdaq-100 Index and associated QQQ ETF create a powerful brand and data licensing revenue that persists regardless of equity trading volume levels
- Dominant position in U.S. options markets — Cboe controls a large share of listed equity and index options volume with particularly strong position in the VIX index and S&P 500 options
- VIX (Volatility Index) is the globally recognized measure of stock market volatility — Cboe owns the VIX methodology and the derivatives markets that trade it
- SPX (S&P 500 index options) and 0DTE (zero days to expiration) options trading has seen dramatic volume growth as retail and institutional investors use daily options for hedging and speculation
- Adenza acquisition added significant debt and compliance-focused software that investors are still evaluating for strategic fit and growth trajectory
- Exchange transaction revenue is cyclical with equity market volatility and volume — Nasdaq must grow its recurring technology revenue to reduce this cyclicality
- Competition in equity exchange trading from NYSE (ICE), BATS, and other venues limits transaction revenue pricing power in commoditized equity matching
- Options trading volumes are sensitive to equity market volatility — low VIX environments reduce hedging urgency and options trading activity
- Market structure changes (SEC regulations on payment for order flow, exchange fees) could affect options market economics and Cboe's transaction revenue
- International expansion (European and Asia-Pacific markets) requires sustained investment and local market penetration against established regional competitors
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