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Synopsys, Inc. (SNPS)

Technology Out of favour

Synopsys provides the essential software tools that engineers use to design and test the complex microchips found in everything from smartphones to cars.

$388.76

Is Synopsys, Inc. a good stock for a UK beginner?

The honest version: Synopsys provides the essential software tools that engineers use to design and test the complex microchips found in everything from smartphones to cars.

No rating · no target price · nothing for sale here
Price-28.1%
Priced in USD - as a UK investor your £ return also moves with the pound-to-dollar exchange rate, on top of the share price itself.
52-week range-34% past year
$388.76
Low $366.00High $636.61
Where today's price sits versus its past year - context, not a signal.
If you had put $1,000 into Synopsys, Inc.
$719-28%

Over about 2 years to 2026-07-31. This is the share price only; any dividends would add to it. And it's the USD return - as a UK investor your actual £ return also moves with the exchange rate. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.

Market cap: The company's total value on the stock market - share price times the number of shares. Big = 'large-cap', small = 'small-cap'.
$74.44B
Avg volume: How many shares change hands on a typical day. Higher means it's easy to buy or exit without moving the price.
2.00M
Day range: The lowest and highest price the shares traded at during the latest day.
$375.51 – $389.64
52-week range: The lowest and highest the shares have traded over the past year - a sense of how wide the swings have been.
$366.00 – $636.61
P/E ratio: Price-to-earnings: the share price divided by yearly profit per share. Lower can mean cheaper; higher often means investors expect fast growth.
85.4
Dividend yield: The yearly dividend as a percentage of the share price - roughly the income you'd earn from dividends alone.
0.0%
Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down.
1.22
How bumpy is it?Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down. 1.22
Calm
Wild
Roughly in step with the market

Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.

Why has it been moving?▲ +3% past week · ▼ -34% past year

Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.

The bull case

Becoming the industry standard for all advanced AI chip development.

The bear case

Technological shifts making their current tools less relevant.

What does Synopsys, Inc. do?

Think of Synopsys as the architect's toolkit for the digital age; they create the software that allows companies to design intricate computer chips before they are physically manufactured. Subscription fees for these design platforms, along with technical support for chipmakers, are what bring in the cash. How well they fold in their recent acquisitions will decide whether they keep their lead in the fast-changing semiconductor industry.

VQGMI
Factor profile

On our factor screen it looks strongest on quality and growth, and weakest on momentum.

Value: How cheap the stock looks versus profits, sales and assets (higher = cheaper). 26Quality: How profitable and financially healthy the company is (higher = stronger). 55Growth: How fast revenue and earnings are growing (higher = faster). 45Momentum: How the share price has been trending recently (higher = stronger recent run). 11Income: The dividend income on offer and how sustainable it looks (higher = more/steadier). 16
Quick checks
What's strong
  • Dominant position in a critical industry
  • Very high profit margins on software sales
  • Strong revenue growth figures
What to watch
  • Value screens low (26/100)
  • Momentum screens low (11/100)
  • Income screens low (16/100)
  • Heavy reliance on the cyclical semiconductor industry
  • Potential for rapid technological obsolescence

What do Synopsys, Inc.'s numbers mean?

P/E
102.1
This shows how much investors are currently paying for every pound of the company's recent profit, reflecting high expectations for future growth.
Forward P/E
25.1
This looks at the price relative to expected future earnings, suggesting that analysts anticipate a significant jump in profitability soon.
Gross margin
82.6%
This indicates that for every pound of sales, the company keeps over 82 pence after covering the direct costs of creating their software.
Beta
1.2
This number tells us the share price tends to be slightly more jumpy or volatile than the wider stock market.

How much money does Synopsys, Inc. make?

Revenue and profit by quarter, and how much of each sale turns into profit.

RevenueNet income
$0$602.20M$1.20B$1.81B$2.41BQ2 25Q3 25Q4 25Q1 26Q2 26
Gross margin
82.6%
Net margin
8.9%
Return on equity
3.8%

Does Synopsys, Inc. pay a dividend?

No - Synopsys, Inc. doesn't currently pay a dividend, so the whole return would rest on the share price. Plenty of growing companies reinvest their profits instead of paying them out - neither approach is better or worse, they're just different.

More in Technology

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What are the scenarios for Synopsys, Inc.?

An illustrative range for the year ahead, with the assumption behind each case — not a prediction or a price target.

$539$389$336today · $389▲ Bull · $418• Base · $389▼ Bear · $360in 1 yearILLUSTRATIVE · NOT A PREDICTION OR PRICE TARGET
Bull
+5% to +10%Stronger demand for AI-related chip design tools.
Base
-2% to +2%Steady adoption of existing software suites.
Bear
-5% to -10%Broader tech sector cooling off.

What are the pros and cons of Synopsys, Inc.?

3bull points
6bear points

How many points the write-up makes each way — a balance check, not a score or verdict.

The bull case3
  • Dominant position in a critical industry
  • Very high profit margins on software sales
  • Strong revenue growth figures
The catch3
  • High current price relative to recent earnings
  • No dividend payments for shareholders
  • Recent earnings drop highlights integration costs
Key risks3
  • Heavy reliance on the cyclical semiconductor industry
  • Potential for rapid technological obsolescence
  • Integration challenges from large acquisitions
What would flip the thesis

The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.

Confidence: medium · data: USD · flags: none · Charts by TradingView Lightweight Charts™
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Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →

This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-01 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.

Figures as of 2026-08-01. Prices may be delayed and numbers can go stale - always double-check before acting.