Cognizant vs Unilever: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Cognizant reported $21.1B of revenue in FY2025 and $2.2B of net income. Unilever reported ~$57.1B of revenue in FY2025 and ~$10.7B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
Cognizant
Cognizant's revenue grew slowly from $19.43 billion in 2022 to $19.74 billion in 2024, then jumped 7% to $21.11 billion in 2025, helped by large deals and the Belcan acquisition. Net income was $2.23 billion in 2025, GAAP operating margin was 16.1%, and adjusted operating margin was 15.8%. Free cash flow reached $2.67 billion. The company returns most of that cash: it paid $610 million in dividends and bought back $1.3 billion of stock in 2025, and deployed $1.6 billion on buybacks in the first half of 2026 alone, while also spending $1.3 billion on acquisitions and drawing $1.0 billion on its revolving credit facility. For 2026 it guides to revenue of $22.04-$22.35 billion (4.0%-5.5% constant-currency growth), adjusted operating margin of 16.0%-16.2%, and adjusted EPS of $5.70-$5.82.
Unilever
Unilever's 2025 turnover from continuing operations was ~$57.1 billion (EUR 50.5 billion), down 3.8% in reported terms because of adverse currency moves and disposals, even as underlying sales grew 3.5% with 1.5% from volume. Free cash flow was ~$6.67 billion (EUR 5.9 billion), about $757 million (EUR 670 million) of productivity savings had been delivered by the end of 2025, and the company announced a new ~$1.69 billion (EUR 1.5 billion) share buyback. Momentum improved in 2026: first-half turnover was ~$28.9 billion (EUR 25.6 billion) (up 0.5%), underlying sales grew 4.8% with 4.2% volume, Q2 underlying growth reached 5.8%, and the underlying operating margin was 20.3%. Unilever raised its full-year outlook after the H1 2026 results.
Revenue and profit by year
Cognizant
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $21.1B | $2.2B | 10.6% | +7.0% | Source |
| FY2024 | $19.7B | — | 0.0% | +2.0% | Source |
| FY2023 | $19.4B | — | 0.0% | -0.4% | Source |
| FY2022 | $19.4B | — | 0.0% | +5.0% | Source |
| FY2021 | $18.5B | $2.1B | 11.5% | +11.1% | Source |
| FY2020 | $16.7B | $1.4B | 8.4% | -0.8% | Source |
| FY2019 | $16.8B | $1.8B | 11.0% | +4.1% | Source |
| FY2018 | $16.1B | $2.1B | 13.0% | +8.9% | Source |
| FY2017 | $14.8B | $1.5B | 10.2% | +9.8% | Source |
| FY2016 | $13.5B | $1.6B | 11.5% | — | Source |
Unilever
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | ~$57.1B | ~$10.7B | 18.7% | -3.8% | Source |
| FY2024 | ~$59.3B | ~$6.5B | 10.9% | +1.5% | Source |
| FY2023 | ~$58.4B | ~$7.3B | 12.6% | -14.0% | Source |
| FY2022 | ~$67.9B | ~$8.6B | 12.7% | +14.5% | Source |
| FY2021 | ~$59.3B | ~$6.8B | 11.5% | +3.4% | Source |
| FY2020 | ~$57.3B | ~$6.3B | 11.0% | -2.4% | Source |
| FY2019 | ~$58.7B | ~$6.4B | 10.8% | +2.0% | Source |
| FY2018 | ~$57.6B | ~$10.6B | 18.4% | -5.1% | Source |
| FY2017 | ~$60.7B | ~$6.8B | 11.2% | +1.9% | Source |
| FY2016 | ~$59.6B | ~$5.9B | 9.8% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Cognizant
- Health Sciences
30.1% (2025)
Work for health plans, providers, and life-sciences companies, including TriZetto software and healthcare operations. $6.35 billion in 2025.
- Financial Services
29.2% (2025)
Technology and operations work for banks, insurers, and capital-markets firms. $6.17 billion in 2025; grew 12% in Q2 2026 to become the largest segment.
- Products and Resources
25.0% (2025)
Engineering, data, cloud, and operations work for manufacturing, retail, consumer goods, travel, energy, and utilities clients, including Belcan. $5.29 billion in 2025.
- Communications, Media and Technology
15.7% (2025)
Services for telecom, media, and technology companies. $3.30 billion in 2025.
Unilever
- Power Brands
78% of 2025 turnover
Dove, Vaseline, Rexona, Sunsilk, OMO, Knorr and the other Power Brands made up 78% of turnover in 2025.
- Beauty & Wellbeing
Not formally reported
One of four business groups reported after the 2025 Ice Cream demerger; it includes prestige beauty and wellbeing supplements.
- Personal Care
Not formally reported
One of the four business groups reported after the 2025 Ice Cream demerger.
- Home Care
Not formally reported
One of the four business groups reported after the 2025 Ice Cream demerger.
- Foods
Not formally reported
Largely to be combined with McCormick in a pending transaction; it includes Unilever Food Solutions for foodservice.
Business model and strategy
Cognizant
How it makes money
Cognizant is a B2B services business organized into four industry segments: Financial Services, Health Sciences, Products and Resources, and Communications, Media and Technology. In 2025 Health Sciences ($6.35B) and Financial Services ($6.17B) were the two largest; by Q2 2026 Financial Services had become the largest at 31.6% of revenue after growing 12% year over year.
Growth strategy
Under CEO Ravi Kumar S, Cognizant's growth plan has four parts: win more large deals (seven deals of $100 million or more were signed in Q2 2026 alone), use AI to modernize clients' legacy applications, data, and infrastructure, deepen hyperscaler partnerships with Microsoft, Google Cloud, and AWS, and buy specialists.
Competitive advantage
Cognizant's clearest advantage is depth in regulated industries, especially U.S. healthcare and financial services. The 2014 TriZetto acquisition gave it core administration software used by many U.S. health plans, which pulls in implementation, hosting, and operations work and is costly for clients to replace.
Unilever
How it makes money
Unilever makes money by manufacturing and selling branded, repeat-purchase consumer products through supermarkets, convenience stores, pharmacies, small independent shops and e-commerce. After the 2025 Ice Cream demerger it reports four business groups: Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care and Foods. Its Power Brands, such as Dove, Vaseline, Rexona, Sunsilk, OMO and Knorr, made up 78% of turnover in 2025.
Growth strategy
Under Fernando Fernandez, Unilever is concentrating investment behind about 30 Power Brands, increasing marketing spend through social and influencer channels, rotating the portfolio toward premium beauty and wellbeing (2025 deals included Dr. Squatch, Wild and Minimalist), and separating lower-growth food and ice cream assets.
Competitive advantage
Unilever's advantage is a mix of trusted brands, emerging-market distribution, local manufacturing, repeat-purchase categories, Power Brand marketing scale, and deep category knowledge in personal care, home care, beauty, and foods.
Questions about Cognizant vs Unilever
Which company has higher revenue — Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation or Unilever PLC?
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation reported $21.1B (FY2025), while Unilever PLC reported ~$57.1B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, Unilever PLC is the larger business, with Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation vs Unilever PLC?
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation's market capitalisation stands at $25.6B, while Unilever PLC's is $132.5B. Unilever PLC carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation.
Which is more financially efficient — Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation or Unilever PLC?
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation generates $59k / employee in revenue per employee, while Unilever PLC generates $594k / employee. Unilever PLC shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation and Unilever PLC make money?
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation and Unilever PLC generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation: Cognizant is a B2B services business organized into four industry segments: Financial Services, Health Sciences, Products and Resources, and Communications, Media and Technology. Unilever PLC: Unilever makes money by manufacturing and selling branded, repeat-purchase consumer products through supermarkets, convenience stores, pharmacies, small independent shops and e-commerce.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation or Unilever PLC?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation trades at 1.2x P/S and Unilever PLC at 2.3x P/S. Unilever PLC commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation bigger than Unilever PLC?
By last reported revenue, Unilever PLC (~$57.1B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation ($21.1B (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Cognizant vs Unilever overview