Skip to content
stoqly

Cadence Design Systems

CDNS Nasdaq Application Software Financials FY2016–FY2025

Cadence Design Systems' revenue rose 14.1% to $5.3 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 28.2%, down from 29.1% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $1.6 billion, up 41.9%. It paid out $925 million in dividends and buybacks, 58% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 0.2%.

Last close · Oct 23, 2026

$316.49

2.2%
Value it Compare
Revenue Total sales reported in the income statement.
$5.3B
14.1% vs prior year
Operating margin Operating income as a share of revenue.
28.2%
0.9 pts
Net income Profit after all expenses, interest and tax.
$1.1B
5.1%
Free cash flow Cash from operations minus capital spending.
$1.6B
41.9%
Return on capital After-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash.
23.7%
4.3 pts
Market cap Last close times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate.
$86.6B
Oct 23 close
P/E Last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters.
73.8x
On $4.29 EPS (TTM)

What Cadence Design Systems does

No business description yet.

Legal name
CADENCE DESIGN SYSTEMS, INC.
Fiscal year ends
December 31, 2025
Latest annual report
—
Accession · CIK
0000813672-26-000016
0000813672

Revenue and margins

Cadence Design Systems had $5.3B of revenue in fiscal 2025, up 14.1% on the year before.

Revenue
Revenue
Margins, % of revenue
Gross Operating Net FCF
Margins, % of revenue
Gross Operating Net FCF

Net income and earnings per share

From fiscal 2016 to 2025, diluted EPS grew 21.6% a year. Loss periods are shown in red.

Net income
Net income
Diluted EPS
Diluted EPS

Returns on capital

After-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash.

Return on capital, equity and assets (annual)
Return on capital Return on equity Return on assets

Cash flow

Free cash flow was $1.6B in fiscal 2025, 30.0% of revenue. Cash from operations minus capital spending.

Free cash flow
Free cash flow
Cash from operations vs capital spending
Cash from operations Capital spending
Cash from operations vs capital spending
Cash from operations Capital spending

Dividends, buybacks and share count

Cadence Design Systems returned $925M to shareholders in fiscal 2025, 58% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 0.2%.

Dividends and buybacks
Dividends Buybacks
Dividends and buybacks
Dividends Buybacks
Diluted shares outstanding (annual)

Value Cadence Design Systems yourself

Change the assumptions and see what they imply per share. These are models, not forecasts or price targets — the answer depends entirely on what you put in.

Discounted cash flow

Value per share

—

Adds net cash of $675M and divides by 273.3M diluted shares. Ten years of cash flows plus a terminal value, discounted to today.

Earnings multiple

Value per share

—

Reference multiples: today 73.8x · peers 10.8x · sector 33.0x.

Balance sheet

Cash, debt and the ratios that show how comfortably Cadence Design Systems can carry it.

Cash vs debt (incl. leases)
Cash Debt
Fiscal year endFY21FY22FY23FY24FY25
Cash and short-term investments $1.1B$887M$1.1B$2.8B$3.2B
Debt incl. finance leases $348M$648M$649M$2.5B$2.5B
Net debt / EBITDA −0.8x−0.2x−0.4x−0.2x−0.4x
Debt / equity 0.1x0.2x0.2x0.5x0.5x
Interest coverage 45.9x46.8x34.6x17.8x12.8x
Current ratio 1.8x1.3x1.2x2.9x2.9x
Quick ratio 1.7x1.2x1.1x2.7x2.7x
Total assets $4.4B$5.1B$5.7B$9.0B$10.2B
Total liabilities $1.6B$2.4B$2.3B$4.3B$4.7B
Shareholders' equity $2.7B$2.7B$3.4B$4.7B$5.5B
Net debt (− = net cash) −$741M−$239M−$489M−$309M−$675M

Insider trades

Open-market purchases and sales by officers, directors and 10% owners, from Form 4 filings. 'Plan' marks trades under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.

Bought, 12 months

$0.0M

0 insiders

Sold, 12 months

$9.1M

5 insiders

Of sales under plans

100%

$9.1M

DateInsiderTradeSharesPriceValueFiling
Oct 15, 2026 Paul CunninghamSr. Vice President Sold plan 2,000 $324.13 $0.6M Form 4
Oct 1, 2026 Vincentelli Alberto SangiovanniDirector Sold plan 1,250 $350.07 $0.4M Form 4
Sep 15, 2026 Paul CunninghamSr. Vice President Sold plan 2,000 $277.12 $0.6M Form 4
Sep 10, 2026 Ita M BrennanDirector Sold plan 180 $285.51 $0.1M Form 4
Aug 26, 2026 Paul ScannellSr. Vice President Sold plan 280 $339.00 $0.1M Form 4
Aug 25, 2026 Vincentelli Alberto SangiovanniDirector Sold plan 1,250 $320.87 $0.4M Form 4
Aug 21, 2026 Chin-Chi TengSr. Vice President Sold plan 4,732 $314.49 $1.5M Form 4
Aug 17, 2026 Paul CunninghamSr. Vice President Sold plan 2,000 $323.32 $0.6M Form 4
Jul 22, 2026 Chin-Chi TengSr. Vice President Sold plan 4,500 $339.46 $1.5M Form 4
Jul 15, 2026 Paul CunninghamSr. Vice President Sold plan 2,000 $383.36 $0.8M Form 4
Jun 22, 2026 Chin-Chi TengSr. Vice President Sold plan 4,500 $384.88 $1.7M Form 4
Jun 15, 2026 Paul CunninghamSr. Vice President Sold plan 2,000 $391.00 $0.8M Form 4

Piotroski F-score

Nine pass/fail tests of profitability, funding and efficiency. 8–9 is strong, 0–2 weak.

TestFY23FY24FY25
Net income is positive ✓ ✓ ✓
Cash from operations is positive ✓ ✓ ✓
Return on assets rose ✓ ✕ ✕
Cash from operations exceeds net income ✓ ✓ ✓
Debt fell relative to assets ✓ ✕ ✓
Current ratio rose ✕ ✓ ✕
Share count didn't rise ✓ ✕ ✓
Gross margin rose — — —
Revenue rose relative to assets ✕ ✓ ✕
F-score 6 / 85 / 85 / 8
Accruals ratio −5.7%−2.8%−6.5%
Altman Z'' 6.356.266.46

Similar companies

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so periods don't line up exactly.

CompanyMarket capGrowthOp. marginFCF marginROICP/EF-score
Cadence Design Systems CDNS $86.6B 14.1% 28.2% 30.0% 23.7% 73.8x 5
OpenText OTEX $7.0B 1.5% 20.6% 15.4% 9.0% — 9 Compare →
Zoom Communications ZM $28.7B 4.4% 23.1% 39.5% 56.2% 8.9x 6 Compare →
Snowflake SNOW $113.7B 29.2% −30.6% 23.9% — — 6 Compare →
Palantir PLTR $505.4B 56.2% 31.6% 46.9% — 169.6x 7 Compare →

10 years of figures

US$ millions unless stated. Hover a ratio's name for its definition.

Download CSV
Fiscal yearFY16FY17FY18FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24FY25
Income statement
Revenue $1.8B $1.9B $2.1B $2.3B $2.7B $3.0B $3.6B $4.1B $4.6B $5.3B
Operating income $245M $324M $396M $492M $646M $779M $1.1B $1.3B $1.4B $1.5B
Interest expense $23.7M $25.7M $23.1M $18.8M $20.7M $17.0M $22.9M $36.2M $76.0M $117M
Pretax income $237M $315M $376M $479M $633M $768M $1.0B $1.3B $1.4B $1.5B
Income tax $34.1M $111M $30.6M −$510M $42.1M $72.5M $196M $241M $340M $413M
Net income $203M $204M $346M $989M $591M $696M $849M $1.0B $1.1B $1.1B
Diluted EPS $0.70 $0.73 $1.23 $3.53 $2.11 $2.50 $3.09 $3.82 $3.85 $4.06
Diluted shares 0.29B 0.28B 0.28B 0.28B 0.28B 0.28B 0.28B 0.27B 0.27B 0.27B
Cash flow
Cash from operations $445M $471M $605M $730M $905M $1.1B $1.2B $1.3B $1.3B $1.7B
Capital expenditure $53.7M $57.9M $61.5M $74.6M $94.8M $65.3M $123M $102M $143M $142M
Free cash flow $391M $413M $543M $655M $810M $1.0B $1.1B $1.2B $1.1B $1.6B
Depreciation and amortization $120M $116M $119M $123M $146M $142M $132M $145M $197M $228M
Stock-based compensation $109M $130M $168M $182M $197M $210M $270M $326M $391M $455M
Acquisitions $41.6M $143M $0.0M $0.3M $198M $226M $614M $198M $738M $430M
Share buybacks $960M $100M $250M $306M $380M $612M $1.1B $700M $550M $925M
Dividends paid $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M
Dividends and buybacks $960M $100M $250M $306M $380M $612M $1.1B $700M $550M $925M
Balance sheet
Cash and short-term investments $468M $693M $533M $705M $928M $1.1B $887M $1.1B $2.8B $3.2B
Total debt $644M $644M $345M $346M $347M $348M $648M $649M $2.5B $2.5B
Finance lease liabilities $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M
Current assets $702M $980M $951M $1.2B $1.5B $1.7B $1.7B $2.0B $4.0B $4.7B
Current liabilities $586M $642M $709M $672M $797M $971M $1.3B $1.6B $1.4B $1.6B
Inventory $39.5M $33.2M $28.2M $55.8M $76.0M $116M $128M $182M $258M $304M
Property and equipment, net $239M $251M $253M $276M $311M $306M $372M $403M $458M $517M
Total assets $2.1B $2.4B $2.5B $3.4B $4.0B $4.4B $5.1B $5.7B $9.0B $10.2B
Total liabilities $1.4B $1.4B $1.2B $1.3B $1.5B $1.6B $2.4B $2.3B $4.3B $4.7B
Shareholders' equity $742M $989M $1.3B $2.1B $2.5B $2.7B $2.7B $3.4B $4.7B $5.5B
Margins
Operating margin 13.5% 16.7% 18.5% 21.1% 24.1% 26.1% 30.2% 30.6% 29.1% 28.2%
EBITDA margin 20.1% 22.6% 24.1% 26.3% 29.5% 30.8% 33.9% 34.1% 33.4% 32.5%
Net margin 11.2% 10.5% 16.2% 42.3% 22.0% 23.3% 23.8% 25.5% 22.7% 20.9%
FCF margin 21.5% 21.3% 25.4% 28.0% 30.2% 34.7% 31.4% 30.5% 24.1% 30.0%
Returns
Return on capital 21.8% 22.6% 35.7% 34.6% 33.0% 36.1% 38.7% 37.5% 28.1% 23.7%
Return on capital employed 14.8% 19.7% 22.4% 22.1% 22.1% 23.7% 29.8% 31.8% 23.1% 18.5%
Return on equity 19.2% 23.6% 30.4% 58.3% 25.7% 26.6% 31.0% 33.9% 26.1% 21.9%
Return on assets 9.1% 9.0% 14.2% 34.0% 16.2% 16.7% 17.8% 19.3% 14.4% 11.6%
Growth
Revenue growth 6.7% 7.0% 10.0% 9.3% 14.8% 11.4% 19.2% 14.8% 13.5% 14.1%
Net income growth −19.5% 0.5% 69.4% 186.0% −40.3% 17.8% 22.0% 22.6% 1.4% 5.1%
EPS growth −13.6% 4.3% 68.5% 187.0% −40.2% 18.5% 23.6% 23.6% 0.8% 5.5%
FCF growth 17.3% 5.5% 31.6% 20.6% 23.7% 27.8% 8.0% 11.5% −10.3% 41.9%
Share count change −6.7% −3.8% 0.3% −0.2% −0.3% −0.3% −1.4% −0.8% 0.4% −0.2%
Financial health
Net debt / EBITDA 0.5x −0.1x −0.4x −0.6x −0.7x −0.8x −0.2x −0.4x −0.2x −0.4x
Debt / equity 0.9x 0.7x 0.3x 0.2x 0.1x 0.1x 0.2x 0.2x 0.5x 0.5x
Interest coverage 10.4x 12.6x 17.1x 26.1x 31.1x 45.9x 46.8x 34.6x 17.8x 12.8x
Current ratio 1.2x 1.5x 1.3x 1.7x 1.9x 1.8x 1.3x 1.2x 2.9x 2.9x
Quick ratio 1.1x 1.5x 1.3x 1.7x 1.8x 1.7x 1.2x 1.1x 2.7x 2.7x
Capital allocation
Capex / revenue 3.0% 3.0% 2.9% 3.2% 3.5% 2.2% 3.5% 2.5% 3.1% 2.7%
Stock comp / revenue 6.0% 6.7% 7.8% 7.8% 7.4% 7.0% 7.6% 8.0% 8.4% 8.6%
Payouts / FCF 245.5% 24.2% 46.0% 46.7% 46.9% 59.1% 93.9% 56.2% 49.2% 58.3%
Quality scores
Piotroski F-score 6.0 8.0 5.0 7.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 5.0 5.0
Altman Z'' 1.9 3.0 3.9 5.4 6.0 6.3 5.5 6.4 6.3 6.5
Accruals ratio −10.9% −11.8% −10.6% 8.9% −8.6% −9.7% −8.3% −5.7% −2.8% −6.5%

Source: SEC EDGAR XBRL filings (CIK 0000813672). Data updated October 9, 2026. Quarterly fourth quarters are the full year minus the first nine months. For information only — not investment advice. Check the original filings before relying on any figure.

↑ ↓ to move · ↵ to open