Accenture vs Cognizant
Accenture reported revenue of $74.2 billion in fiscal 2026, 3.5 times Cognizant's $21.1 billion in fiscal 2025. Accenture's revenue grew 6.5% in its latest year, and Cognizant's grew 7.0%. Accenture had an operating margin of 15.4%, against 16.1% at Cognizant. Free cash flow was $11.6 billion at Accenture and $2.6 billion at Cognizant. Their fiscal years end in different months (August 31 and December 31), so the periods don't line up exactly.
Side by side
| Accenture | Cognizant | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2026, Aug 31, 2026 | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 |
| Revenue | $74.2B | $21.1B |
| Revenue growth | 6.5% | 7.0% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 8.0% | 4.9% |
| Gross margin | 32.0% | — |
| Operating margin | 15.4% | 16.1% |
| Net margin | 11.3% | 10.6% |
| Free cash flow | $11.6B | $2.6B |
| Free cash flow margin | 15.7% | 12.3% |
| Return on capital | 30.6% | 16.1% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | −0.2x | −0.3x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $11.5B | $2.0B |
| Change in diluted share count | −2.4% | −1.6% |
| Last close | $247.23 | $69.34 |
| P/E at the last close | 18.2× | 15.1× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | sold $16.1 million | bought $209,768, sold $6.3 million |
| Piotroski F-score | 6 of 9 | 6 of 8 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ unless marked (a foreign company may report in another), each company's latest fiscal year from its 10-K, or 20-F or 40-F for a foreign company. Growth rates compare with the year before; the five-year rate is the average a year. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business; P/E is the last close over the latest earnings per share. Banks are measured differently (return on equity, efficiency ratio), so some rows apply to one company only.
Ten years
Revenue
US$ billions, fiscal years
AccentureCognizant
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
AccentureCognizant
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
AccentureCognizant
Source: the companies' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR, and the last close. For information only, not investment advice: the figures describe results, not which company is the better investment. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with either company. Full figures on the Accenture and Cognizant pages.