Cognizant beats expectations with 14% Q2 profit rise; lifts annual rev growth forecast to 4-6%

New Delhi: Cognizant on Thursday reported better-than-expected growth with net income rising 14 per cent year-on-year to $645 million for the June 2025 quarter, as the Nasdaq-listed IT services firm raised the lower end of its full-year revenue growth forecast, pegging it at a 4 to 6 per cent range.

Cognizant's revenue for the second quarter - it runs on a January to December fiscal year cycle - was at $5.25 billion, increasing 8.1 per cent year-over-year or 7.2 per cent in constant currency terms, according to the earnings release.

The cranking up of the lower end of the guidance band is on account of outperformance in the first half of the year, two mega deals won, as well as agentic solutions and AI unlocking new spends, the top management said.

"Our second quarter revenue performance exceeded the high end of our guidance range, underscoring the effectiveness of our strategy to build a resilient and durable portfolio that positions us to win in the AI era," Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S said.

Third quarter revenue is seen between $5.27-5.35 billion, growth of 4.6 per cent to 6.1 per cent (or 3.5-5 per cent in constant currency).

The full-year 2025 revenue is expected to be $20.7-21.1 billion, growth of 4.7-6.7 per cent (4-6 per cent in constant currency).

Jatin Dalal, Chief Financial Officer of the company, said the increased revenue guidance midpoint and the reaffirmed adjusted operating margin outlook reflect strong execution and momentum year-to-date.

"We now expect to return approximately $2 billion to shareholders this year, reinforcing our commitment to returning excess capital and confidence in our long-term strategy," he added.

Second quarter bookings included six large deals, which are deals with a total contract value of $100 million or greater. Of these, two deals had a total contract value of over $1 billion each.

Total headcount as of June 30, 2025, was 343,800, an increase of 7,500 from both Q1 2025 and Q2 2024.

"On a trailing-twelve-months basis, Voluntary Attrition - Tech Services was 15.2 per cent in the second quarter of 2025, as compared to 15.8 per cent and 13.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2025 and second quarter of 2024, respectively," the release said.