The U.S. bull market is extremely narrow. It’s all about hyperscalers and second-order derivative infrastructure plays. Two weeks ago, I covered several software services companies that receive no love from investors. Today, I will comment on two IT consultancies that are also struggling in the market. First, however, I take a swing towards my latest stock purchase.
Nasdaq Inc.
Last week, I added to NDAQ. This was my third add-on since my initial purchase. NDAQ has been one of the momentum stocks in the market. Its strong performance has been in tandem with other exchanges (CME, ICE, Euronext). A notable recent development is how NDAQ is embracing blockchain technology. Next year, NDAQ wants to enable the trading and settlement of tokenized shares on its platform. The plan allows investors to choose between traditional settlement and tokenized settlement on a trade-by-trade basis, with tokenized shares recorded on a blockchain for enhanced security, transparency, and efficiency.
This innovation will benefit investors by enabling faster settlements, lower fees, 24/7 trading access, reduced counterparty risks, and improved automation through smart contracts. Listed companies gain from increased liquidity, enhanced investor access, and streamlined corporate actions via blockchain technology integration.
It’s important not to conflate NDAQ’s tokenization with the more synthetic wrapper idea proposed by Robinhood Markets. NDAQ’s tokenization differs from Robinhood’s because its tokenized shares are fully integrated into the regulated stock market infrastructure, maintaining identical rights, CUSIP identifiers, and settlement rules as traditional shares. In contrast, Robinhood’s tokenized shares operate on a less regulated platform, often with fractional ownership and limited direct investor control or traditional share equivalency. Thus, NDAQ’s approach combines new benefits with established market protections, avoiding liquidity fragmentation and potential operational risks that can arise in the Robinhood model.
Is AI Disrupting Consultancies?
Consultancies such as Accenture and Cognizant have faced a challenging market environment in 2025, with share prices under pressure as investors question their long-term growth amid the AI revolution. Under pressure, the two companies try to prove their relevance in the AI age. Cognizant has adopted an AI-centric strategy, marked by numerous GenAI projects and the integration of AI into key digital workplace platforms. Similarly, Accenture has struck strategic partnerships with product leaders in GenAI and leverages these to secure new deals. These efforts have been to no avail; investors have grown increasingly negative, and many seem to believe that AI means less, not more, business for IT consultancies. It’s early days, so who knows exactly what’s going to happen. To totally discard these companies might be premature.
Accenture goes all-in on AI
While investors question whether AI represents more risk than reward for IT consultancies, ACN has chosen to double down on generative AI, tripling its AI-related revenue to $2.7 billion in fiscal 2025 and winning $5.9 billion in gen AI bookings over the year. ACN highlights that, less than two years ago, it had only a handful of AI projects. Now it has roughly 6,000 projects with 70,000 data professionals reskilled to handle AI assignments. Thus, rather than treating AI as a threat, ACN is integrating advanced AI into its operating model, aiming to reskill more than 500,000 employees, establishing deep partnerships with leading AI platform providers, and rolling out proprietary AI-driven solutions for clients.
ACN’s strategic pivot to AI underpinned its fiscal 2025 financials. Revenues accelerated, and free cash flow surged 26% year-over-year (YoY). Despite strong financial performance, short-term consulting demand is muted, especially driven by lower demand from the public sector in the U.S., and shares are down nearly 30% YTD. However, this price action might obscure ACN’s underlying operational resilience. The company signals a higher operating margin for fiscal 2026, mainly driven by the ability to win outsourcing tenders. Last year, ACN clocked in a 10% YoY growth in managed services, showcasing strong client demand and the scalability of its AI-enabled delivery model.
ACN’s share price looks cheap here.
Cognizant gets tripped up
CTSH’s latest earnings report for Q2 2025 showcased robust financial performance, with revenue rising to $5.25 billion—an 8.1% YoY jump, underpinned by strength in financial services and health sciences. Adjusted operating margin reached 15.6%, improving by 40 basis points, while GAAP and adjusted EPS climbed 15% and 12%, respectively. Notably, the quarter marked record bookings of $27.8 billion over the last twelve months, driven by major deal wins exceeding $1 billion each, and free cash flow more than doubled to $331 million.
AI initiatives remain central to CTSH’s strategy. The company is executing over 2000 generative AI projects, deeply integrating AI into digital workplace platforms and client solutions. Management highlights a “three vector AI opportunity,” blending native AI offerings, productivity gains through automation, and customer experience transformation. Now, CTSH generates more than $1B in annual AI-related revenues.
However, the evolving landscape of H-1B visa policies presents fresh uncertainty. CTSH is one of the largest US employers of H-1B visa holders, essential for cost-competitive service delivery and scaling high-tech skill sets. Any tightening of visa allotments or increased restrictions could raise talent costs, slow project ramp-ups, and add friction to both onshore and offshore delivery models. While CTSH’s diversified workforce and global presence provide some mitigation, immigration headwinds are not good as AI talent becomes even more critical.
Overall, CTSH’s recent results and accelerated AI push signal a company adapting well to the changing tech and services market—yet its fortunes remain influenced by broader regulatory trends.
CTSH has to push through the Trump wrench to make a comeback. Stocks are cheap here.
Disclaimer: Important Information for Retail Investors
The information in this blog is for educational purposes only, not financial advice. Investing in stocks carries risks; past performance doesn’t guarantee future results. Conduct thorough research and seek advice from financial professionals before investing.
The author is a retail investor, not a licensed advisor. Due to changing market conditions, content accuracy isn’t guaranteed. All investments have risks, including the potential loss of principal. Assess your risk tolerance and goals before investing; diversification is key to managing risk.
The author may have positions in the mentioned stocks, which can change without notice. Readers should exercise due diligence and consult professionals before acting on information from this blog.
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Nice writeup on NDAQ's tokenization initiative! What I find particularly compelling about Nasdaq's strategy is how they're layering innovation on top of strong operational execution. Beyond the blockchain technology you mentioned, the company has been consistently driving organic revene growth across their Solutions segment (data, analytics, workflow), which now accounts for a significant portion of their business mix. They've also done an excellent job extracting expense synergies from the Adenza acquisition while maintaining the product roadmap momentum. This combination of operational discipline and strategic innovation positions them well versus other exchanges. The distinction you drew between NDAQ's fully-integrated tokenization approach and Robinhood's more fragmented model is spot on—regulatory compliance and market infrastructure integration matter. Good add to the portfolio!