Cadence Design Systems Inc vs Zscaler Inc — how do they compare? Cadence Design Systems Inc trades at $376.46 (market cap $104.24B), while Zscaler Inc trades at $152.43 (market cap $24.59B). The key difference: Cadence Design Systems Inc is far larger — about 4.2× Zscaler Inc's market cap, and Cadence Design Systems Inc is trading nearer its 52-week high, Zscaler Inc nearer its low. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| CDNS | ZS | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $104.24B | $24.59B |
Sector | Technology | Technology |
52-Week High | $416.39 | $336.27 |
52-Week Low | $265.66 | $118.05 |
Enterprise Value | $105.91B | $22.92B |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Cadence Design Systems (CDNS) trades at $377.92, down 1.63% on the day, with strong analyst support (84% buy ratings) and a $400.25 consensus price target. The stock shows bullish technical signals with support at $373 and resistance at $385. Recent quarterly earnings have consistently beaten expectations, with Q2 2026 results expected on July 27, 2026. Revenue growth remains robust, climbing from $3.6B in 2022 to $5.3B in 2025, though profit margins have moderated slightly.
CDNS presents a compelling growth story driven by AI and semiconductor design demand, with upside to analyst targets. However, high valuation multiples (P/E 88.09, P/S 18.68) pose risks if growth slows. Key near-term catalyst is Q2 earnings; sustained execution is critical to justify premium valuation amid competitive pressures.
Zscaler trades at $141.82, up 1.83% with bearish technical signals despite recent earnings beats. Revenue growth remains strong at $2.67B for 2025, though the company continues to report net losses. Analyst consensus is overwhelmingly bullish with a $192.64 price target, but multiple class action investigations and high valuation metrics create headwinds.
The stock faces near-term pressure from technical weakness and profitability challenges, but long-term prospects remain supported by cybersecurity demand and Zero Trust adoption. Key risks include ongoing litigation, AI infrastructure costs, and the transition to profitability amid slowing growth projections.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
Cadence Design Systems is a provider of electronic design automation software, intellectual property, and system design and analysis products. EDA software automates the chip design process, enhancing design accuracy, productivity, and complexity in a full-flow end-to-end solution. Cadence offers a portfolio of design IP, as well as system design and analysis products, which enable system-level analysis and verification solutions. Cadence's comprehensive portfolio is benefiting from a mutual convergence of semiconductor companies moving up-stack toward systems-like companies, and systems companies moving down-stack toward in-house chip design. The resulting expansion in EDA customers, alongside secular digitalization of various end markets, benefits EDA vendors like Cadence.
Read more on CDNS →Zscaler is a security-as-a-service firm that offers its customers cloud-delivered solutions for protecting user devices and data. The firm leverages its position in 150 colocation data centers to deliver traditionally appliance-based security functionality, such as firewalls and sandboxes, as a completely cloud-native platform. The firm focuses on large enterprise customers and offers two primary product suites: Zscaler Internet Access, which securely connects users to externally managed application and websites (such as Salesforce and Google), and Zscaler Private Access, which securely connects users to internally managed applications. Both product suites encompass a broad gamut of capabilities situated across the traditional security stack.
Read more on ZS →