FFIV vs. HPE: F5 vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) both fall under the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group, but FFIV is classified in Communications Equipment while HPE is classified in Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals.

Company profile comparison for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Profile Item	FFIV	HPE
Name	F5, Inc.	Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Information Technology	Information Technology
GICS Industry Group	Technology Hardware & Equipment	Technology Hardware & Equipment
GICS Industry	Communications Equipment	Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals
GICS Sub-Industry	Communications Equipment	Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals
Market Capitalization	17.66 billion USD	59.43 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	NYSE
Listing Date	June 4, 1999	October 19, 2015
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

FFIV

HPE

GSPC

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
Total Return (1Y)	30.07%	110.12%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	27.03%	49.38%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	7.22%	28.98%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

FFIV

HPE

GSPC

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is heavily traded at around 20.47M shares per day, whereas F5 (FFIV) sees a more moderate 692.80K — larger orders in the latter may require more patience and tighter control over order sizing.

Risk profile metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	40.81%	61.60%
Beta (5Y)	1.09	1.49
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-47.42%	-48.36%
Avg. Volume (3M)	692.80K	20.47M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FFIV and HPE are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.63	1.72
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.84	2.76

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both F5 (FFIV) at 19.01% and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 10.94% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

19.01%

Max: 42.47%
Q3: 19.13%
FFIV: 19.01%
Median: 11.00%
Q1: 1.63%
Min: -20.62%

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

10.94%

Max: 42.47%
Q3: 19.13%
Median: 11.00%
HPE: 10.94%
Q1: 1.63%
Min: -20.62%

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their ROE against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

F5 (FFIV) at 21.14% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 6.67%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

21.14%

Max: 27.60%
FFIV: 21.14%
Q3: 11.66%
Median: 4.08%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -11.02%

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

6.67%

Max: 27.60%
Q3: 11.66%
HPE: 6.67%
Median: 4.08%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -11.02%

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their net margin against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

F5 (FFIV) at 23.99% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 12.56%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

23.99%

Max: 36.27%
FFIV: 23.99%
Q3: 18.36%
Median: 8.84%
Q1: 1.46%
Min: -21.39%

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

12.56%

Max: 36.27%
Q3: 18.36%
HPE: 12.56%
Median: 8.84%
Q1: 1.46%
Min: -21.39%

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their operating margin against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
ROE (TTM)	19.01%	10.94%
ROA (TTM)	7.74%	2.64%
Net Margin (TTM)	21.14%	6.67%
Operating Margin (TTM)	23.99%	12.56%
Gross Margin (TTM)	81.98%	36.62%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Only one side can be read here: Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) reports revenue growth of 13.84%, ranked against its industry; F5 (FFIV) has no revenue growth figure this period.

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

F5 (FFIV) at 6.10% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at -102.07% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
Revenue Growth (YoY)	--	13.84%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	6.37%
EPS Growth (YoY)	6.10%	-102.07%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	24.10%	--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

F5 (FFIV) at 1.73 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 1.11 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for HPE.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

1.73

Max: 5.34
Q3: 3.02
Median: 1.95
FFIV: 1.73
Q1: 1.32
Min: 0.17

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

1.11

Max: 5.34
Q3: 3.02
Median: 1.95
Q1: 1.32
HPE: 1.11
Min: 0.17

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their current ratio against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both F5 (FFIV) at 0.05 and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 0.76 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

0.05

Max: 1.76
Q3: 0.78
Median: 0.24
FFIV: 0.05
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.01

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

0.76

Max: 1.76
Q3: 0.78
HPE: 0.76
Median: 0.24
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.01

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.73	1.11
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.05	0.76
Net Debt / EBITDA	-1.49	2.05

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

F5 (FFIV) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) reports a yield of 1.26%, ranking against industry peers normally.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

0.00%

Max: 0.73%
Q3: 0.31%
FFIV: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

1.26%

HPE: 1.26%
Max: 0.73%
Q3: 0.31%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

F5 (FFIV) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) reports a payout of 28.74%, ranking against industry peers normally.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

0.00%

Max: 32.27%
Q3: 14.48%
FFIV: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

28.74%

Max: 32.27%
HPE: 28.74%
Q3: 14.48%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	1.26%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	28.74%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both F5 (FFIV) at 24.83 and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 23.08 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

24.83

Max: 69.48
Q3: 41.02
Median: 26.39
FFIV: 24.83
Q1: 19.36
Min: 6.07

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

23.08

Max: 69.48
Q3: 41.02
Median: 26.39
HPE: 23.08
Q1: 19.36
Min: 6.07

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both F5 (FFIV) at 5.17 and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 1.42 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

5.17

Max: 11.30
Q3: 5.82
FFIV: 5.17
Median: 2.56
Q1: 1.05
Min: 0.00

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

1.42

Max: 11.30
Q3: 5.82
Median: 2.56
HPE: 1.42
Q1: 1.05
Min: 0.00

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both F5 (FFIV) at 4.41 and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) at 2.24 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

FFIV

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

4.41

Max: 10.75
Q3: 5.52
FFIV: 4.41
Median: 3.17
Q1: 1.79
Min: 0.33

HPE

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

2.24

Max: 10.75
Q3: 5.52
Median: 3.17
HPE: 2.24
Q1: 1.79
Min: 0.33

F5 (FFIV) vs. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for F5 (FFIV) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Metric	FFIV	HPE
P/E Ratio (TTM)	24.83	23.08
P/S Ratio (TTM)	5.17	1.42
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.41	2.24
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.63%	7.97%