Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) Announces Earnings Results

Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The software maker reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.14, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.64 billion. Workday had a net margin of 8.60% and a return on equity of 14.75%.

Workday Stock Up 1.5%

NASDAQ WDAY traded up $2.82 during trading on Thursday, reaching $193.57. 7,175,674 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,085,555. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $47.81 billion, a PE ratio of 60.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $154.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.14. Workday has a fifty-two week low of $110.36 and a fifty-two week high of $249.85.

Workday News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Workday this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Workday reported adjusted earnings of $2.75 per share, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.61. Revenue reached $2.649 billion, slightly above expectations of $2.64 billion, while total revenue increased 12.8% year over year and subscription revenue rose 13.9% to $2.471 billion. Workday Fiscal 2027 Second-Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Canaccord Genuity raised its price target for Workday to $225, indicating continued analyst confidence in the company’s long-term growth prospects. Canaccord Raises Workday Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors were also focused on reports that Workday may be exploring strategic alternatives or a potential sale. Management commentary on acquisition rumors could influence sentiment, although no transaction was confirmed in the supplied reports. CNBC Workday Strategic Alternatives Report
• Negative Sentiment: Workday’s updated outlook was substantially below analyst expectations. Fiscal third-quarter revenue guidance was approximately $2.5 billion versus consensus of $2.7 billion, while fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $9.9 billion to $10.0 billion fell short of the $10.7 billion consensus. The weaker outlook may outweigh the quarterly earnings beat and pressure the shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 target price on shares of Workday in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Workday in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Summit Redstone set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Workday in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. DA Davidson set a $135.00 target price on Workday in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Workday in a report on Friday, August 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Workday currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $189.86.

Insider Activity at Workday

In other news, CFO Zane Rowe sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.70, for a total transaction of $862,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 288,460 shares in the company, valued at $41,451,702. The trade was a 2.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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, insider Robert Enslin sold 5,374 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Sunday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.90, for a total value of $724,952.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 239,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,304,368.10. The trade was a 2.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 875,020 shares of company stock worth $113,938,503. 18.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Workday

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDAY. Strategic Investment Advisors MI increased its holdings in Workday by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 3,263 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $777,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Workday by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 1,079 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its stake in shares of Workday by 45.8% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 280 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Workday by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 1,759 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Workday during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Workday

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.