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Side-by-side financial comparison of CIENA CORP (CIEN) and Frontier Group Holdings, Inc. (ULCC). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
CIENA CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($1.2B vs $997.0M, roughly 1.2× Frontier Group Holdings, Inc.). Frontier Group Holdings, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 5.3% vs 4.1%, a 1.2% gap on every dollar of revenue. CIENA CORP produced more free cash flow last quarter ($134.6M vs $-113.0M). Over the past eight quarters, Frontier Group Holdings, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (7.4% CAGR vs 3.9%).
Ciena Corporation is an American optical networking systems and software company based in Hanover, Maryland. The company has been described as a vital player in optical connectivity. The company reported revenues of $4.8 billion and more than 9,000 employees, as of November 2025. Gary Smith serves as president and chief executive officer (CEO).
Frontier Communications Parent, Inc. is an American telecommunications company with a fiber-optic network and cloud-based services owned by Verizon. It was previously known as Citizens Utilities Co., Citizens Communications Co., and Frontier Communications Corp.
CIEN vs ULCC — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q3 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.2B | $997.0M |
| Net Profit | $50.3M | $53.0M |
| Gross Margin | 41.3% | — |
| Operating Margin | 6.0% | 4.9% |
| Net Margin | 4.1% | 5.3% |
| Revenue YoY | — | -0.5% |
| Net Profit YoY | — | -1.9% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.35 | $0.24 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | — | $997.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.2B | $886.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.1B | $929.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.1B | $912.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.1B | $1.0B | ||
| Q3 24 | $942.3M | $935.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $910.8M | $973.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.0B | $865.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | $53.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $50.3M | $-77.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.0M | $-70.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $44.6M | $-43.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $37.0M | $54.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $14.2M | $26.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $-16.8M | $31.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $49.5M | $-26.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 41.3% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 40.2% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 44.0% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 40.9% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 42.9% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 42.7% | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 45.0% | — |
| Q4 25 | — | 4.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 6.0% | -8.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.9% | -8.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 7.5% | -5.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 5.3% | 4.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.8% | 2.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | -0.4% | 2.6% | ||
| Q1 24 | 8.2% | -3.6% |
| Q4 25 | — | 5.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 4.1% | -8.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.8% | -7.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.2% | -4.7% | ||
| Q4 24 | 3.3% | 5.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.5% | 2.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | -1.8% | 3.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 4.8% | -3.0% |
| Q4 25 | — | $0.24 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.35 | $-0.34 | ||
| Q2 25 | $0.06 | $-0.31 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.31 | $-0.19 | ||
| Q4 24 | $0.26 | $0.24 | ||
| Q3 24 | $0.10 | $0.11 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-0.12 | $0.14 | ||
| Q1 24 | $0.34 | $-0.12 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $1.3B | $671.0M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | — | $620.0M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $2.8B | $491.0M |
| Total Assets | $5.7B | $7.2B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | 1.26× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | — | $671.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.3B | $566.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.3B | $563.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.2B | $686.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.3B | $740.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.1B | $576.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.3B | $658.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.4B | $622.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | $620.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | — | $673.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $565.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $512.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $507.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | — | $474.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $455.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $469.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | $491.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.8B | $434.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.8B | $506.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.8B | $570.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.8B | $604.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.9B | $549.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.9B | $520.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $2.9B | $484.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | $7.2B | ||
| Q3 25 | $5.7B | $6.7B | ||
| Q2 25 | $5.7B | $6.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $5.6B | $6.5B | ||
| Q4 24 | $5.6B | $6.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $5.6B | $5.8B | ||
| Q2 24 | $5.6B | $5.7B | ||
| Q1 24 | $5.6B | $5.2B |
| Q4 25 | — | 1.26× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 1.55× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 1.12× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 0.90× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 0.84× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 0.86× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 0.88× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 0.97× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $174.3M | $-91.0M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $134.6M | $-113.0M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 11.0% | -11.3% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 3.3% | 2.2% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 3.47× | -1.72× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $605.5M | $-600.0M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | — | $-91.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $174.3M | $-215.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $156.9M | $-133.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $103.7M | $-86.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $349.4M | $87.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-159.4M | $-156.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $58.5M | $9.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $266.1M | $-22.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | $-113.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $134.6M | $-217.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $128.2M | $-166.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $76.8M | $-104.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $265.8M | $73.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-179.0M | $-170.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $41.6M | $-22.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $249.5M | $-39.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | -11.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 11.0% | -24.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 11.4% | -17.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 7.2% | -11.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | 23.6% | 7.3% | ||
| Q3 24 | -19.0% | -18.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | 4.6% | -2.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | 24.0% | -4.5% |
| Q4 25 | — | 2.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.3% | 0.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.6% | 3.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.5% | 2.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.4% | 1.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.1% | 1.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.9% | 3.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 1.6% | 2.0% |
| Q4 25 | — | -1.72× | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.47× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 17.50× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.33× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 9.44× | 1.61× | ||
| Q3 24 | -11.20× | -6.00× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 0.29× | ||
| Q1 24 | 5.37× | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
CIEN
| Optical Networking | $815.5M | 67% |
| Routing And Switching | $125.9M | 10% |
| Platform Softwareand Services Segment | $90.0M | 7% |
| Maintenance Support And Training | $80.7M | 7% |
| Installation And Deployment | $65.9M | 5% |
| Blue Planet Automation Softwareand Services Segment | $27.8M | 2% |
| Consulting And Network Design | $13.6M | 1% |
ULCC
| Aircraft Fare | $453.0M | 45% |
| Passenger Service Fees | $227.0M | 23% |
| Passenger Baggage | $177.0M | 18% |
| Passenger Seat Selection | $69.0M | 7% |
| Other Passenger Revenue | $36.0M | 4% |
| Other | $35.0M | 4% |
