A company financials platform lets you compare a US company reporting under US GAAP with a European company reporting under IFRS, but only after you check four things: how the income statement is presented, what "operating profit" includes, how leases are booked, and where interest and dividends sit in the cash flow statement. Revenue and net income usually line up; the subtotals in between are where comparisons go wrong.
We cover 7,000+ public companies in the United States, Finland and Sweden, with every figure traced to the original filing, so both frameworks sit side by side in our data. This guide uses Cisco Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO), which reports under US GAAP, and Nokia Oyj (Nasdaq Helsinki: NOKIA), which reports under IFRS, to show what a fair comparison looks like in practice.
Why US GAAP and IFRS company financials do not line up by default
US companies file 10-K and 10-Q reports with the SEC under US GAAP. Listed companies in Finland and Sweden prepare consolidated statements under IFRS as adopted in the EU. Both frameworks produce an income statement, a balance sheet and a cash flow statement, and both define revenue under nearly identical rules (ASC 606 and IFRS 15). The differences sit in presentation choices and a handful of measurement rules, which is why two companies with similar businesses can show quite different margins.
A second gap is the calendar. Cisco's fiscal year ends in late July; Nokia's ends on 31 December. Comparing "the latest year" therefore means comparing periods that are about seven months apart. Name the period end of each company every time you quote a figure.
Four differences to check before you compare two companies
The table below summarises the four areas where US GAAP and IFRS reports most often diverge, and what to do about each.
| Area | US GAAP | IFRS | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presentation | SEC rules require specific line items; operating income is a common subtotal. | IAS 1 sets few required lines; companies choose expense by function or by nature. IFRS 18 adds defined subtotals from 2027. | Map each line to a common shape before comparing subtotals. |
| Operating profit | Usually reported as operating income. | No required definition today; companies also publish "comparable" or "adjusted" figures. | Use the statutory figure from the income statement, and note any adjusted figure separately. |
| Leases | ASC 842: operating lease cost stays in operating expenses as a single charge. | IFRS 16: depreciation of the right-of-use asset plus interest on the lease liability. | Expect higher EBITDA under IFRS for lease-heavy companies, all else equal. |
| Cash flow classification | Interest paid and dividends received are operating cash flows. | IAS 7 allows interest and dividends in operating, investing or financing (IFRS 18 narrows this). | Check the cash flow policy note before comparing operating cash flow. |
Source: summary of US GAAP (ASC 606, ASC 842) and IFRS (IAS 1, IAS 7, IFRS 15, IFRS 16, IFRS 18) requirements as of 28 Oct 2026. Not company data; no fiscal year or currency applies.
The IFRS 18 change matters for anyone building a multi-year series: from 2027, IFRS reporters must show an operating profit subtotal with a defined content. We cover the transition in IFRS 18 is coming in 2027.
Worked example: Cisco (US GAAP) and Nokia (IFRS) side by side
Both companies sell networking equipment and software to operators and enterprises. The table shows each company's latest full fiscal year as shown in our company comparison, in each company's own reporting currency; figures are not converted.
| Metric | Cisco Systems (US GAAP), FY2026, ended 25 Jul 2026 | Nokia Oyj (IFRS), FY2025, ended 31 Dec 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | USD 63,325 million | EUR 19,889 million |
| Gross profit | USD 40,860 million | EUR 8,659 million |
| Gross margin | 64.5% | 43.5% |
| Operating profit (statutory) | USD 15,368 million | EUR 885 million |
| Operating margin | 24.3% | 4.4% (our calculation from reported figures) |
| Net income | USD 13,267 million | EUR 660 million |
| Net margin | 21.0% | 3.3% |
| Diluted EPS | USD 3.33 | EUR 0.12 |
Source: Clarifo company comparison, data as of 28 Oct 2026. Cisco: Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended 25 Jul 2026, USD1. Nokia: consolidated income statement, Annual Report 2025, p. 201, EUR2.
Three points stand out once you read the table with the four checks in mind.
- Only the ratios are comparable directly. USD and EUR amounts differ by the exchange rate, so the size gap in the revenue row is not the true gap. Margins and EPS growth are currency-neutral.
- Nokia's statutory operating profit is the right comparator. Nokia's consolidated income statement shows operating profit of EUR 885 million for 2025, against EUR 1,970 million for 2024 as restated. Nokia also publishes "comparable" figures that exclude items such as restructuring; those are company-defined and should not be set against Cisco's US GAAP operating income in its FY2026 10-K.
- Comparatives can be restated. Nokia changed how it presents gains and losses on its venture fund investments in 2025, moving them to financial income, and restated 2024 and 2023 accordingly2. An older download of Nokia's 2024 figures will therefore not match the 2024 column in the 2025 report.
Segment margins are often quoted next to group margins, so check which table a ratio came from. Nokia's Network Infrastructure segment reported operating profit of EUR 780 million on revenue of EUR 7,986 million in 2025, a 9.8% margin3. The group margin from the consolidated income statement is far lower.
How a company financials platform handles the two frameworks
We store income statement, balance sheet and cash flow figures for every company in one consistent shape, and we keep the framework context with each company: US issuers come from SEC EDGAR filings tagged under US GAAP; Nasdaq Helsinki and Nasdaq Stockholm issuers come from their IFRS annual and interim reports. Every figure carries a citation back to the filing and page, so when a number looks odd you can open the source page rather than guess.
What no data service can do is make a framework choice disappear. A lease-heavy IFRS reporter will show higher EBITDA than an otherwise identical US GAAP reporter, and no mapping removes that. The useful practice is to compare like with like (statutory to statutory, group to group) and to read the policy notes when cash flow figures matter.
Name each fiscal year end
Write the period end next to every figure. Cisco's July year end and Nokia's December year end are seven months apart.
Use statutory lines
Take operating profit from the consolidated income statement, then add adjusted figures as a separate, labelled row.
Compare ratios across currencies
Keep amounts in reporting currency and compare margins, growth and returns, which are currency-neutral.
Run the same comparison in Claude or ChatGPT
Our MCP server is read-only and works as a built-in app in Claude and ChatGPT. A prompt like the one below returns both companies in their own currencies, with the period end and a link to the filing behind each figure.
Compare Cisco and Nokia on revenue, gross margin, operating margin and net margin for each company's latest fiscal year. State the accounting standard and fiscal year end for each, keep amounts in reporting currency, and cite the filing page for every figure.
For a longer walkthrough of research workflows, see how to use Clarifo in Claude for company research workflows.
Open any US, Finnish or Swedish company page to see its statements in one shape, with the accounting framework and a filing link for every figure.
- Cisco Systems, Inc., Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended 25 Jul 2026, filed 2 Sep 2026: SEC EDGAR.
- Nokia Oyj, Annual Report 2025, consolidated income statement and note on presentation change, p. 201: filing page.
- Nokia Oyj, Annual Report 2025, Network Infrastructure segment results, p. 74: filing page.
Not investment advice. Figures are based on data reported by the companies.