AAPL
Apple Inc.
AAPL offers stronger fundamentals, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
FFIV
F5, Inc.
FFIV has the edge over AAPL overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger modeled upside.
AAPL Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
AAPL's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
FFIV Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
FFIV's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
AAPL PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 26x | $230 | -35% |
| Fair | 31x | $279 | -21% |
| Expensive | 37x | $328 | -7.5% |
| Forward | 38x | $355 | — |
| Current | 40x | $355 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
AAPL's PE is in its expensive range at 40x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 38x next year's earnings.
FFIV PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 17x | $318 | — |
| Cheap | 23x | $286 | -9.9% |
| Current | 25x | $318 | — |
| Fair | 27x | $342 | +7.7% |
| Expensive | 37x | $467 | +47% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
FFIV has the edge over AAPL in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
AAPL Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Moderate | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for AAPL, but weaker profitability.
FFIV Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
FFIV has the edge over AAPL on the outlook, with more favorable valuation and profitability expectations.
AAPL Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $9.28 | +3.3% |
| Q3 2026 | $8.98 | +20% |
| Q2 2026 | $8.71 | +32% |
| Q1 2026 | $8.26 | +29% |
| Q4 2025 | $7.90 | +25% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.46 | +23% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.59 | +0.2% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.42 | -0.3% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.30 | -2% |
AAPL has the edge over FFIV in the latest year-over-year earnings comparison.
FFIV Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $18.21 | +45% |
| Q3 2026 | $12.53 | +6.2% |
FFIV's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $12.53 over the past year, up 6.2% from the year before, and higher year over year every quarter since late 2026.
AAPL Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $114.5B | +12% |
| Q2 2026 | $109.4B | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $111.2B | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $143.8B | +16% |
| Q3 2025 | $102.5B | +7.9% |
| Q2 2025 | $94B | +9.6% |
| Q1 2025 | $95.4B | +5.1% |
| Q4 2024 | $124.3B | +4% |
AAPL has the edge over FFIV on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 31% | -0.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 33% | +2.6 points |
| Q1 2026 | 32% | +1.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 35% | +0.9 points |
| Q3 2025 | 32% | +0.5 points |
| Q2 2025 | 30% | +0.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 31% | +0.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 34% | +0.7 points |
AAPL has the edge over FFIV on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
FFIV Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $917.4M | +13% |
| Q2 2026 | $865.1M | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $811.7M | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $822.5M | +7.3% |
FFIV's revenue has grown year over year every quarter since late 2025: $917M last quarter, up 13% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 25% | -0.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 22% | +0.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 26% | -0.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 25% | N/A |
| Q2 2025 | 25% | N/A |
| Q1 2025 | 22% | N/A |
| Q4 2024 | 27% | N/A |
FFIV's operating margin was 25% last quarter, down 0.5 points from the same quarter a year ago.
AAPL Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $25.9B | -2.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $31.9B | +31% |
| Q1 2026 | $26.7B | +28% |
| Q4 2025 | $51.6B | +91% |
| Q3 2025 | $26.5B | +11% |
| Q2 2025 | $24.4B | -8.6% |
| Q1 2025 | $20.9B | +0.9% |
| Q4 2024 | $27B | -28% |
AAPL's free cash flow has been positive every quarter for seven years: $136B over the past year, up 38% from the year before.
FFIV Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $280.6M | +2.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $347.6M | +41% |
| Q4 2025 | $149.5M | -23% |
FFIV has the edge over AAPL in the latest year-over-year cash flow comparison.
AAPL Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | +5.6M shares |
| 1 year | -1.9% | -284M shares |
| 3 years | -6.9% | -1.1B shares |
| 5 years | -13% | -2.1B shares |
| Available history | -17% | -3.1B shares |
AAPL has the edge over FFIV on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $24.3B |
| Q2 2026 | $25.1B |
| Q1 2026 | $12.3B |
| Q4 2025 | $24.7B |
| Q3 2025 | $20.1B |
| Q2 2025 | $21.1B |
| Q1 2025 | $25.9B |
| Q4 2024 | $23.6B |
AAPL spent $86.4B buying back its own shares over the past year, down 4.8% from the year before.
FFIV Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.4% | +252K shares |
| 1 year | -1.6% | -942K shares |
FFIV has 58M diluted shares, down 1.6% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $100M |
| Q3 2025 | $125M |
| Q2 2025 | $125M |
AAPL Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.5x | Very low |
AAPL's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
FFIV Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.4x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -1.7x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -1.4x | Net Cash |
FFIV has the edge over AAPL on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
AAPL Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 68.1 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 85.0 | Overbought |
AAPL's weekly RSI is 68 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 85 (overbought).
FFIV Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 38.2 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 3.4 | Oversold |
FFIV's weekly RSI is 38 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 3 (oversold).
AAPL PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | AAPL | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 40x | 28x | 42% above |
| PE % | 96 | 35 | 61 pts above |
AAPL is trading at 40x earnings, a 42% premium to the Technology sector's median of 28x.
FFIV PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | FFIV | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 25x | 28x | 9% below |
| PE % | 30 | 35 | 5 pts below |
FFIV has the edge over AAPL on valuation relative to its sector.
AAPL Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $343.1 | 3.4% above |
| 20 week MA | $329.0 | 7.9% above |
| 50 week MA | $295.6 | 20% above |
| 100 week MA | $262.4 | 35% above |
| 200 week MA | $226.3 | 57% above |
AAPL has the edge over FFIV on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
FFIV Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $405.2 | 22% below |
| 20 week MA | $405.0 | 22% below |
| 50 week MA | $345.9 | 8.2% below |
| 100 week MA | $315.3 | 0.7% above |
| 200 week MA | $244.7 | 30% above |
FFIV has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 30% above its 200-week average.
AAPL Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $72.5 | $132.0 | +82% |
| 2021 | $132.0 | $176.3 | +34% |
| 2022 | $176.3 | $131.9 | -25% |
| 2023 | $131.9 | $192.5 | +46% |
| 2024 | $192.5 | $255.6 | +33% |
| 2025 | $255.6 | $273.4 | +7% |
| 2026 YTD | $273.4 | $354.9 | +30% |
AAPL has the edge over FFIV on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
FFIV Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $139.2 | $175.6 | +26% |
| 2021 | $175.6 | $234.8 | +34% |
| 2022 | $234.8 | $141.0 | -40% |
| 2023 | $141.0 | $179.0 | +27% |
| 2024 | $179.0 | $255.6 | +43% |
| 2025 | $255.6 | $263.1 | +2.9% |
| 2026 YTD | $263.1 | $317.6 | +21% |
FFIV has finished higher in five of the last six years. It's up 21% so far in 2026.