Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) Stock Price Down 4.6% – What’s Next?

Shares of Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) were down 4.6% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $195.33 and last traded at $196.9260. 1,760,643 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 5,098,755 shares. The stock had previously closed at $206.45.

Key Stories Impacting Workday

Here are the key news stories impacting Workday this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reuters reported that Silver Lake and Workday have held discussions in recent months. Although the talks remain ongoing and no deal is guaranteed, the possibility of a takeover has supported a significant rally in WDAY and temporarily triggered volatility-related trading halts. Silver Lake in talks to buy Workday, sources say
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains a tailwind. BMO Capital maintained a Buy rating, citing Workday’s strategic value and AI-driven growth, while Robert W. Baird raised its price target from $190 to $215 and kept an Outperform rating. William Blair also reiterated a Buy rating, pointing to the company’s franchise quality and potential takeout upside. Workday: Strategic Value and AI-Driven Growth Support Buy Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: The takeover reports have also lifted sentiment across the software sector, with investors viewing a potential Silver Lake transaction as evidence that beaten-down SaaS companies may attract strategic or private-equity buyers. However, the reports are speculative and do not indicate that an agreement has been reached.
• Negative Sentiment: Piper Sandler reaffirmed a Neutral rating and assigned a $145 price target, well below recent trading levels. The cautious view highlights valuation risk and the possibility that takeover enthusiasm could fade if negotiations fail. Piper Sandler rating

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WDAY. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Workday in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Workday in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Workday from $185.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Workday from $140.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Workday in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.36.

Workday Trading Down 3.6%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $143.31 and a 200 day moving average of $138.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.21, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.08.

Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The software maker reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.15. Workday had a return on equity of 14.75% and a net margin of 8.60%.The company had revenue of $2.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.23 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Workday, Inc. will post 5.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Zane Rowe sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.70, for a total value of $862,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 288,460 shares in the company, valued at $41,451,702. This represents a 2.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CAO Mark S. Garfield sold 918 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.19, for a total transaction of $130,530.42. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 73,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,481,962.42. The trade was a 1.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 875,020 shares of company stock valued at $113,938,503. Corporate insiders own 18.64% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Workday

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Workday by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,009,288 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $5,371,495,000 after purchasing an additional 3,210,232 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its holdings in shares of Workday by 25,412.8% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 10,230,616 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $2,197,332,000 after buying an additional 10,190,516 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Workday by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,770,707 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $2,098,552,000 after buying an additional 96,139 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Workday by 47.5% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 5,842,491 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,406,463,000 after buying an additional 1,882,391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Workday by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,091,926 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,089,970,000 after acquiring an additional 75,922 shares during the period. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Workday Company Profile

Workday, Inc (NASDAQ: WDAY) is a provider of cloud-based enterprise applications focused on human capital management (HCM) and financial management. Founded in 2005 by Dave Duffield and Aneel Bhusri following their tenure at PeopleSoft, the company develops software-as-a-service solutions that help organizations manage workforce and financial processes in a unified, cloud-native environment. Workday’s platform emphasizes continuous updates, data security, and a configurable architecture aimed at large and mid-sized enterprises.

The company’s product portfolio centers on Workday Human Capital Management and Workday Financial Management, with additional offerings for payroll, talent management, workforce planning and analytics.