Comprehensive Stock Comparison
Compare Cognyte Software Ltd. (CGNT) vs Teradata Corporation (TDC) Stock
Analyze side-by-side fundamentals, valuation, growth, and profitability to decide which stock is the better buy.
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Quick Verdict
| Category | Winner | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Growth | CGNT | 11.9% revenue growth vs TDC's -4.5% |
| Value | TDC | Lower P/E (12.0x vs 29.6x) |
| Quality / Margins | TDC | 7.8% net margin vs CGNT's -1.2% |
| Stability / Safety | CGNT | Beta 0.93 vs TDC's 1.30, lower leverage |
| Dividends | Tie | Neither pays a meaningful dividend |
| Momentum (1Y) | TDC | +32.1% vs CGNT's -20.6% |
| Efficiency (ROA) | TDC | 7.3% ROA vs CGNT's -0.9%, ROIC 54.2% vs -2.5% |
Who Each Stock Is For
Income & stability
Growth exposure
Long-term compounding (10Y)
Sleep-well-at-night portfolio
Defensive / Recession hedge
Business Model
What each company does and how it makes money
Cognyte Software provides investigative analytics software to government agencies and enterprises for security and intelligence operations. It generates revenue primarily through software licenses and subscriptions — with government contracts forming the bulk of its business — supplemented by professional services like implementation and support. The company's competitive advantage lies in its specialized, open-architecture platform that integrates diverse data sources for complex investigations, creating high switching costs for security-focused customers.
Teradata provides a connected multi-cloud data platform for enterprise analytics, enabling companies to manage and analyze data across hybrid cloud environments. It generates revenue primarily through subscription-based software licenses for its Teradata Vantage platform — roughly 80% of total revenue — with the remainder coming from consulting and support services. The company's key advantage is its decades of expertise in enterprise-scale data warehousing and analytics, giving it deep relationships with large organizations that rely on its proven platform for mission-critical workloads.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
How each company's revenue is distributed across its business units
Financial Metrics Comparison
Side-by-side fundamentals across 2 stocks. BestLagging
Financial Scorecard
TDC leads in 2 of 6 categories — strongest in Profitability & Efficiency and Total Returns. 3 categories are tied.
Financial Metrics (TTM)
TDC is the larger business by revenue, generating $1.7B annually — 4.4x CGNT's $377M. TDC is the more profitable business, keeping 7.8% of every revenue dollar as net income compared to CGNT's -1.2%. On growth, CGNT holds the edge at +15.5% YoY revenue growth, suggesting stronger near-term business momentum.
| Metric | CGNTCognyte Software … | TDCTeradata Corporat… |
|---|---|---|
| RevenueTrailing 12 months | $377M | $1.7B |
| EBITDAEarnings before interest/tax | $16M | $274M |
| Net IncomeAfter-tax profit | -$5M | $130M |
| Free Cash FlowCash after capex | $11M | $305M |
| Gross MarginGross profit ÷ Revenue | +70.9% | +59.5% |
| Operating MarginEBIT ÷ Revenue | +0.9% | +12.3% |
| Net MarginNet income ÷ Revenue | -1.2% | +7.8% |
| FCF MarginFCF ÷ Revenue | +3.0% | +18.3% |
| Rev. Growth (YoY)Latest quarter vs prior year | +15.5% | +2.9% |
| EPS Growth (YoY)Latest quarter vs prior year | +173.6% | +46.2% |
Valuation Metrics
On an enterprise value basis, TDC's 10.2x EV/EBITDA is more attractive than CGNT's 50.9x.
| Metric | CGNTCognyte Software … | TDCTeradata Corporat… |
|---|---|---|
| Market CapShares × price | $511M | $3.0B |
| Enterprise ValueMkt cap + debt − cash | $434M | $3.1B |
| Trailing P/EPrice ÷ TTM EPS | -41.71x | 27.15x |
| Forward P/EPrice ÷ next-FY EPS est. | 29.64x | 11.98x |
| PEG RatioP/E ÷ EPS growth rate | — | — |
| EV / EBITDAEnterprise value multiple | 50.87x | 10.19x |
| Price / SalesMarket cap ÷ Revenue | 1.46x | 1.71x |
| Price / BookPrice ÷ Book value/share | 2.34x | 23.25x |
| Price / FCFMarket cap ÷ FCF | 15.21x | 10.80x |
Profitability & Efficiency
TDC delivers a 56.5% return on equity — every $100 of shareholder capital generates $57 in annual profit, vs $-2 for CGNT. CGNT carries lower financial leverage with a 0.16x debt-to-equity ratio, signaling a more conservative balance sheet compared to TDC's 4.33x. On the Piotroski fundamental quality scale (0–9), TDC scores 7/9 vs CGNT's 5/9, reflecting strong financial health.
| Metric | CGNTCognyte Software … | TDCTeradata Corporat… |
|---|---|---|
| ROE (TTM)Return on equity | -2.0% | +56.5% |
| ROA (TTM)Return on assets | -0.9% | +7.3% |
| ROICReturn on invested capital | -2.5% | +54.2% |
| ROCEReturn on capital employed | -1.8% | +25.3% |
| Piotroski ScoreFundamental quality 0–9 | 5 | 7 |
| Debt / EquityFinancial leverage | 0.16x | 4.33x |
| Net DebtTotal debt minus cash | -$77M | $156M |
| Cash & Equiv.Liquid assets | $113M | $420M |
| Total DebtShort + long-term debt | $36M | $576M |
| Interest CoverageEBIT ÷ Interest expense | 21.71x | 7.25x |
Total Returns (with DRIP)
A $10,000 investment in TDC five years ago would be worth $7,474 today (with dividends reinvested), compared to $2,302 for CGNT. Over the past 12 months, TDC leads with a +32.1% total return vs CGNT's -20.6%. The 3-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) favors CGNT at 24.2% vs TDC's -8.2% — a key indicator of consistent wealth creation.
| Metric | CGNTCognyte Software … | TDCTeradata Corporat… |
|---|---|---|
| YTD ReturnYear-to-date | -20.3% | +6.1% |
| 1-Year ReturnPast 12 months | -20.6% | +32.1% |
| 3-Year ReturnCumulative with dividends | +91.6% | -22.7% |
| 5-Year ReturnCumulative with dividends | -77.0% | -25.3% |
| 10-Year ReturnCumulative with dividends | -74.7% | +26.2% |
| CAGR (3Y)Annualised 3-year return | +24.2% | -8.2% |
Risk & Volatility
CGNT is the less volatile stock with a 0.93 beta — it tends to amplify market swings less than TDC's 1.30 beta. A beta below 1.0 means the stock typically moves less than the S&P 500. TDC currently trades 75.4% from its 52-week high vs CGNT's 60.8% drawdown — a narrower gap to the peak suggests stronger recent price momentum.
| Metric | CGNTCognyte Software … | TDCTeradata Corporat… |
|---|---|---|
| Beta (5Y)Sensitivity to S&P 500 | 0.93x | 1.30x |
| 52-Week HighHighest price in past year | $11.66 | $41.78 |
| 52-Week LowLowest price in past year | $6.29 | $18.43 |
| % of 52W HighCurrent price vs 52-week peak | +60.8% | +75.4% |
| RSI (14)Momentum oscillator 0–100 | 39.5 | 51.6 |
| Avg Volume (50D)Average daily shares traded | 289K | 1.4M |
Analyst Outlook
Wall Street rates CGNT as "Hold" and TDC as "Hold". Consensus price targets imply 97.5% upside for CGNT (target: $14) vs 11.1% for TDC (target: $35).
| Metric | CGNTCognyte Software … | TDCTeradata Corporat… |
|---|---|---|
| Analyst RatingConsensus buy/hold/sell | Hold | Hold |
| Price TargetConsensus 12-month target | $14.00 | $35.00 |
| # AnalystsCovering analysts | 5 | 47 |
| Dividend YieldAnnual dividend ÷ price | — | — |
| Dividend StreakConsecutive years of raises | 0 | — |
| Dividend / ShareAnnual DPS | — | — |
| Buyback YieldShare repurchases ÷ mkt cap | +1.0% | +7.2% |
Historical Charts
Charts are rendered on first load. Hover for details.
Chart 1Total Return — 5 Years (Rebased to 100)
| Stock | Feb 21 | Feb 26 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognyte Software Lt… (CGNT) | 100 | 32.77 | -67.2% |
| Teradata Corporation (TDC) | 100 | 66.51 | -33.5% |
Teradata Corporation (TDC) returned -25% over 5 years vs Cognyte Software Lt… (CGNT)'s -77%.
Chart 2Revenue Growth — 10 Years
| Stock | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognyte Software Lt… (CGNT) | $56M | $351M | +522.6% |
| Teradata Corporation (TDC) | $2.3B | $1.8B | -24.6% |
Chart 3Net Margin Trend — 10 Years
| Stock | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognyte Software Lt… (CGNT) | -1.6% | -3.4% | -119.2% |
| Teradata Corporation (TDC) | 5.4% | 6.5% | +21.0% |
Chart 4P/E Ratio History — 6 Years
| Stock | 2018 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teradata Corporation (TDC) | 153.4 | 26.9 | -82.5% |
Teradata Corporation has traded in a 19x–153x P/E range over 6 years; current trailing P/E is ~27x.
Chart 5EPS Growth — 10 Years
| Stock | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognyte Software Lt… (CGNT) | -0.01 | -0.17 | -1056.5% |
| Teradata Corporation (TDC) | 0.95 | 1.16 | +22.1% |
Chart 6Free Cash Flow — 5 Years
Cognyte Software Ltd. generated $34M FCF in 2025 (-35% vs 2021). Teradata Corporation generated $277M FCF in 2024 (-36% vs 2021).
CGNT vs TDC: Frequently Asked Questions
9 questions · data-driven answers · updated daily
01Is CGNT or TDC a better buy right now?
Teradata Corporation (TDC) offers the better valuation at 27.1x trailing P/E (12.0x forward), making it the more compelling value choice. Analysts rate Cognyte Software Ltd. (CGNT) a "Hold" — based on 5 analyst ratings — the highest consensus in this comparison. The "better buy" depends entirely on your goals: growth investors should weight revenue trajectory, value investors should weight P/E and PEG, and income investors should weight dividend yield and streak.
02Which has the better valuation — CGNT or TDC?
On forward P/E, Teradata Corporation is actually cheaper at 12.0x.
03Which is the better long-term investment — CGNT or TDC?
Over the past 5 years, Teradata Corporation (TDC) delivered a total return of -25.3%, compared to -77.0% for Cognyte Software Ltd. (CGNT). A $10,000 investment in TDC five years ago would be worth approximately $7K today (assuming dividends reinvested). Over 10 years, the gap is even starker: TDC returned +26.2% versus CGNT's -74.7%. Past returns do not guarantee future results, and the stock with the higher historical return may already have its best growth priced in.
04Which is safer — CGNT or TDC?
By beta (market sensitivity over 5 years), Cognyte Software Ltd. (CGNT) is the lower-risk stock at 0.93β versus Teradata Corporation's 1.30β — meaning TDC is approximately 41% more volatile than CGNT relative to the S&P 500. On balance sheet safety, Cognyte Software Ltd. (CGNT) carries a lower debt/equity ratio of 16% versus 4% for Teradata Corporation — giving it more financial flexibility in a downturn.
05Which has better profit margins — CGNT or TDC?
Teradata Corporation (TDC) is the more profitable company, earning 6.5% net margin versus -3.4% for Cognyte Software Ltd. — meaning it keeps 6.5% of every revenue dollar as bottom-line profit. Operating margin tells a similar story: TDC leads at 11.9% versus -1.5% for CGNT. At the gross margin level — before operating expenses — CGNT leads at 70.4%, reflecting greater pricing power or product mix advantage. Stronger margins indicate durable pricing power, lower cost of revenue, or higher mix of software/services. They are one of the clearest signs of business quality.
06Is CGNT or TDC more undervalued right now?
On forward earnings alone, Teradata Corporation (TDC) trades at 12.0x forward P/E versus 29.6x for Cognyte Software Ltd. — 17.7x cheaper on a one-year earnings basis. Analyst consensus price targets imply the most upside for CGNT: 97.5% to $14.00.
07Which pays a better dividend — CGNT or TDC?
None of the stocks in this comparison currently pay a material dividend. All are effectively zero-yield and should be held for capital appreciation rather than income.
08Is CGNT or TDC better for a retirement portfolio?
For long-horizon retirement investors, Cognyte Software Ltd. (CGNT) is the stronger choice — it scores higher on the combination of lower volatility, dividend reliability, and long-term compounding (low volatility (β 0.93)). Both have compounded well over 10 years (CGNT: -74.7%, TDC: +26.2%), confirming both are viable long-term holds — but the lower-volatility option typically results in less emotional selling during corrections. Retirement portfolios generally favour predictability over maximum returns. Consult a financial advisor before making allocation decisions.
09What are the main differences between CGNT and TDC?
Both stocks operate in the Technology sector, making this a peer-level intra-sector comparison — the same macro tailwinds and headwinds will affect both. These fundamental differences mean investors should not choose between them on a single metric — the "better stock" depends entirely on which of these characteristics aligns with your investment strategy.
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