Arista Networks, Inc. vs PALO ALTO NETWORKS, INC, two Computer Hardware stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Arista and Palo Alto Networks both sell hardware and software into the enterprise, and Arista is the more profitable today. It keeps a 38% net margin to Palo Alto's 8, the difference between selling switches at scale and spending heavily to grow a security platform. Palo Alto is the far more expensive stock, near 268 times earnings to Arista's 57, priced for years of security-spend growth. Both run debt-free. Arista is harvesting the networking boom; Palo Alto is still investing through the cybersecurity one.
Comparison updated 2026-06-15.
| Metric | ANET | PANW |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $186.90 | $325.82 |
| Market cap | $238.1B | $261.0B |
| Sector | Computer Hardware | Computer Hardware |
| Stage | Growth | Growth |
| P/E | 64.2 | 267.1 |
| P/B | 17.65 | 9.43 |
| P/S | 24.52 | 24.61 |
| EV/EBITDA | 55.5 | 234.3 |
| Revenue growth | +30.5% | +19.4% |
| Gross margin | 61.9% | 67.5% |
| Operating margin | 42.7% | -6.1% |
| Net margin | 38.3% | 8.0% |
| Return on equity | 27.6% | 3.0% |
| Return on assets | 17.2% | 1.8% |
| Return on invested capital | 24.8% | 2.8% |
| FCF yield | 2.2% | 1.4% |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 0.04 |
| Current ratio | 2.83 | 0.86 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 7.97 | 6.28 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 5 / 9 | 4 / 9 |
Each week boothcheck ranks the stocks whose prices are betting on the most. Read the most stretched bets archive →
boothcheck is also on Android. Get the app on Google Play →
The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.