C3.ai vs Cerence
Cerence reported revenue of $252 million in fiscal 2025, about the same as C3.ai's $250 million in fiscal 2026. C3.ai's revenue fell 35.7% in its latest year, and Cerence's fell 24.1%. C3.ai had an operating margin of -199.2%, against -0.9% at Cerence. Free cash flow was −$192 million at C3.ai and $47 million at Cerence. Their fiscal years end in different months (April 30 and September 30), so the periods don't line up exactly.
Side by side
| C3.ai | Cerence | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2026, Apr 30, 2026 | FY2025, Sep 30, 2025 |
| Revenue | $250M | $252M |
| Revenue growth | −35.7% | −24.1% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 6.4% | −5.3% |
| Gross margin | 30.9% | 72.7% |
| Operating margin | −199.2% | −0.9% |
| Net margin | −187.9% | −7.4% |
| Free cash flow | −$192M | $47M |
| Free cash flow margin | −76.8% | 18.6% |
| Return on capital | — | — |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | — |
| Dividends and buybacks | $0M | $2M |
| Change in diluted share count | 8.8% | 3.7% |
| Last close | $11.69 | $8.15 |
| P/E at the last close | — | — |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | bought $302,300, sold $70.2 million | sold $229,562 |
| Piotroski F-score | — | 5 of 9 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ 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
C3.aiCerence
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
C3.aiCerence
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
C3.aiCerence