Core Viewpoint - The current market volatility presents an opportunity for investors to initiate positions in high-quality stocks that have been undervalued due to recent market conditions [1][2]. Group 1: ServiceNow - ServiceNow's shares have decreased by nearly 9.6% in 2025, creating a potential entry point for investors as the company is well-positioned to benefit from the AI transformation in enterprise software [4][5]. - The company reported a 20% year-over-year increase in subscription revenue and a 22% rise in current remaining performance obligations (cRPO), indicating strong demand for its solutions [5]. - ServiceNow's AI offerings have seen significant traction, with Pro Plus deals quadrupling year over year, and the average annual contract value increasing by one-third quarter over quarter [6]. - The stock is trading at a forward P/E of 57.8, but its resilient business model and strong cash position of $10.9 billion make it an attractive buy [7]. Group 2: PayPal - PayPal's stock has fallen nearly 30% from its December 2024 high, presenting a favorable entry point as the company transitions from a payments platform to a comprehensive commerce platform [8]. - The company's revenue grew by 1% year over year to $7.8 billion, while operating income surged by 31% to $1.5 billion, and GAAP EPS increased by 56% to $1.29 [9]. - PayPal is experiencing strong momentum in various business areas, including branded checkouts and its Venmo service, and is actively entering the AI-powered commerce space [10]. - With a solid balance sheet showing $15.8 billion in cash and a low forward P/E of 13.1 compared to its five-year average of 30.6, the stock appears to be a compelling investment [11]. Group 3: Arista Networks - Arista Networks' stock has declined over 31% since January 2025, yet the company remains attractive due to the rising demand for high-performance networking solutions for cloud and AI applications [12]. - The company holds a 45% market share in high-speed Ethernet switch solutions for data centers and offers AI-powered networking capabilities [13]. - Major clients include Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Apple, and Oracle, which collectively account for 48% of Arista's revenue, providing a strong foundation despite economic uncertainties [14]. - The stock is trading at a forward earnings ratio of 30.9, lower than its five-year average of 39.1, suggesting it is a good investment opportunity [15].

Summary of ServiceNow (NOW) 2025 Investor Day Company Overview - **Company**: ServiceNow (NOW) - **Event**: 2025 Investor Day - **Date**: May 5, 2025 - **Location**: Las Vegas Core Industry Insights - **Industry**: Enterprise Software - **Focus**: ServiceNow aims to be the defining enterprise software company of the 21st century, referred to as "Desco 21C" [6][33] Key Points and Arguments 1. **Company Growth and Positioning**: - ServiceNow is entering a period of strength, with significant scaling and a strong brand presence [5][11] - The company has a no layoff pledge, which has helped maintain talent during macroeconomic disruptions [12] 2. **Financial Performance**: - ServiceNow has consistently focused on profitability and leverage, unlike many competitors who had to adapt post-pandemic [12] - The company has a strong free cash flow margin, which is appreciated by shareholders [13] 3. **Market Position and Competitive Advantage**: - ServiceNow is recognized as the "AI operating system of the enterprise" by industry leaders [24] - The company has expanded its Total Addressable Market (TAM) significantly with innovations like RaptorDB and workflow data fabric [15][16] 4. **AI Integration and Innovation**: - ServiceNow is leveraging agentic AI to transform enterprise operations, emphasizing the importance of speed and integration [19][21] - The company has introduced new capabilities such as AI Control Tower, AI Agent Fabric, and AI Agent Studio to enhance AI agent collaboration [52][53] 5. **Customer Success Stories**: - Notable clients include AstraZeneca and Siemens, showcasing significant operational efficiencies achieved through ServiceNow's platform [49][50] - Over 85% of Fortune 500 companies utilize ServiceNow, indicating strong market penetration [48] 6. **Future Growth and Projections**: - ServiceNow aims to reach $30 billion in revenue, with several products projected to surpass $1 billion in Annual Contract Value (ACV) by 2026 [47][48] - The company is positioned to double its product offerings exceeding $1 billion in ACV by 2028 [47] Additional Important Insights - **Cultural and Operational Strength**: - ServiceNow emphasizes a culture of trust and transparency, which has been pivotal in building relationships with the financial community [4][8] - The company has a strong focus on innovation, with over 6,000 innovations delivered in the past year alone [40] - **Technological Advancements**: - RaptorDB is highlighted as the world's fastest database, significantly enhancing performance metrics for clients [29][90] - The Workflow Data Fabric allows seamless integration of data across various systems, enhancing operational efficiency [93] - **Market Trends and Challenges**: - The rise of AI presents both opportunities and challenges, with many enterprises struggling with data readiness for AI applications [88] - ServiceNow's solutions aim to address fragmentation and improve AI readiness across organizations [39][89] - **Strategic Partnerships**: - Collaborations with major tech companies like Microsoft, Google, and AWS are crucial for expanding ServiceNow's capabilities and market reach [53][109] This summary encapsulates the key insights and strategic directions discussed during the ServiceNow 2025 Investor Day, highlighting the company's growth trajectory, market positioning, and innovative approaches to enterprise software solutions.

Core Viewpoint - Workiva has developed a software platform that integrates data for organizations, enabling efficient reporting for executives, investors, and regulators, and has reported strong financial results for Q1 2025, exceeding expectations on both revenue and earnings [1][8][11]. Financial Performance - Workiva generated $206 million in revenue for Q1 2025, marking a 17% increase year-over-year and surpassing management's guidance of $205 million [8]. - The company reported a GAAP loss of $0.38 per share, which was better than the forecasted loss of $0.45 per share, while achieving a non-GAAP profit of $0.14 per share, exceeding the expected $0.07 [11][12]. - Workiva's net revenue retention rate decreased to 110% from 111% year-over-year, indicating slower spending growth from existing customers [13]. Customer Growth and Market Position - Workiva had 6,385 customers at the end of Q1 2025, reflecting a modest 5% year-over-year increase, with significant growth in high-spending customer cohorts [9]. - The company’s addressable market is valued at $35 billion, suggesting substantial growth potential based on its current revenue of $206 million [19]. Analyst Sentiment and Stock Valuation - Analysts are overwhelmingly bullish on Workiva, with an average price target of $102, indicating a potential upside of 54% over the next 12 to 18 months [16]. - The stock is currently 55% below its 2021 high, with a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 4.9, close to its lowest level in five years and a 49% discount to its average P/S ratio of 9.6 during that period [2][17]. Strategic Outlook - Workiva's management plans to continue investing in growth, supported by a solid balance sheet with $767 million in cash and equivalents [14][15]. - Despite a forecast of steady revenue growth at 17% for Q2, there are concerns regarding worsening bottom-line results [14].

Core Insights - OneStream is hosting its flagship user conference, OneStream Splash, from May 13 to 15, 2025, in Nashville, TN, focusing on AI-driven innovation in finance [1] - The event will feature over 2,300 finance leaders and technical professionals, making it the largest Splash event to date [3] - OneStream aims to empower finance leaders to navigate uncertainty and improve productivity through AI solutions tailored for finance [2][4] Event Highlights - The conference will include over 80 breakout sessions across eight tracks, covering topics such as Financial Planning & Forecasting and Real-World AI Use Cases [4] - Keynote sessions will feature insights from OneStream CEO Tom Shea on the future of finance in the AI era and how finance leaders can leverage AI and automation [4] - The Wave Technical Program will provide hands-on labs and practical sessions for deploying OneStream solutions using no-code tools [4] Success Stories and Leadership - The event will showcase firsthand stories from finance leaders at companies like Endeavour Energy and Gibson, highlighting the use of OneStream for modernizing planning and reporting [4] - Reshma Saujani, founder of Girls Who Code, will discuss leadership and growth, emphasizing the importance of embracing bravery in building future leaders [4] - The Women in Finance program will spotlight female finance leaders, offering inspiration and real stories of ambition and advocacy [4] Innovation and Collaboration - An expanded Innovation Hall will feature interactive experiences, including partner showcases and live product demos, aimed at fostering collaboration [4] - Attendees will have opportunities to engage with OneStream experts and explore AI-driven solutions in finance [4][5] - The conference is supported by various global advisors and implementation partners, enhancing the collaborative environment [5] Company Overview - OneStream is recognized as a leading enterprise finance management platform that unifies financial and operational data, embedding AI for improved decision-making [6][7] - The company serves over 1,600 customers, including 17% of the Fortune 500, and aims to be the operating system for modern finance [8]

Core Viewpoint - C3.ai and Palantir Technologies are key players in the enterprise AI software market, both experiencing significant investor interest amid the generative AI boom [1][2][3] Group 1: Company Overview - C3.ai is a pure-play enterprise AI software provider with over 100 pre-built AI applications across various industries and emphasizes partnerships with cloud giants like Microsoft and Alphabet [4][5] - Palantir is a larger player in enterprise analytics and AI platforms, known for its Gotham platform used by government agencies, and is expanding into commercial markets with its Foundry platform and new AI offerings [11][12] Group 2: Financial Performance - C3.ai reported total revenues of $98.8 million in its fiscal third quarter, a 26% year-over-year increase, with subscription revenues growing 22% to $85.7 million [6][10] - Palantir's growth accelerated to 29% in 2024 from 17% in 2023, and it has achieved profitability on a GAAP basis, marking a shift towards self-funding growth [12][13] Group 3: Market Position and Valuation - C3.ai's stock valuation is more modest with a forward 12-month P/S ratio of 6.29, compared to Palantir's high ratio of 66.2, indicating a steep overvaluation for Palantir [10][14] - C3.ai's partnerships and recent government contracts signal potential for growth, while Palantir's established business model provides a stable revenue base but comes with risks related to government contracts [5][15] Group 4: Investment Outlook - C3.ai is viewed as having better upside potential due to its reasonable valuation and improving fundamentals, despite being riskier and unprofitable [20][21] - Palantir, while having superior financials and a strong market position, is trading at a premium, suggesting limited room for growth in the near term [20][21]

Core Viewpoint - Salesforce is positioned as the better investment choice compared to Oracle, driven by its accelerated growth in AI, unified platform strategy, and superior profitability growth prospects [19]. Group 1: Company Overview - Salesforce and Oracle are major players in the cloud enterprise software market, offering platforms for customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning, database management, and AI-powered solutions [1][2]. - Both companies have significantly transformed business operations, customer relationships, and data management [2]. Group 2: Salesforce Analysis - Salesforce is the leader in the customer relationship management software market, consistently outperforming competitors like Microsoft and Oracle [3]. - The company has expanded its ecosystem through acquisitions, including Slack and Zoomin, to enhance its offerings beyond CRM into collaboration, data security, and AI automation [4]. - AI is central to Salesforce's growth strategy, with the launch of Einstein GPT in 2023 embedding generative AI capabilities across its platform [5]. - Salesforce's AI and Data Cloud revenues grew 120% year-over-year in fiscal 2025, with over 3,000 paid Agentforce deals closed within 90 days of launch [6]. - Despite a slowdown in overall revenue growth to 7.5% year-over-year in Q4 fiscal 2025 due to macroeconomic factors, adjusted earnings per share increased by 21.4%, indicating effective cost management [7]. Group 3: Oracle Analysis - Oracle's cloud infrastructure business saw a 49% year-over-year revenue growth in Q3 fiscal 2025, with demand for AI training GPUs increasing by 244% [8]. - The company launched AI Agent Studio to help businesses create and manage AI agents, building on existing AI capabilities in its Fusion Applications [9]. - Oracle's multi-cloud strategy is expanding, with its Database@Azure service growing 92% in Q3, indicating successful partnerships with major tech companies [10]. - However, Oracle faces challenges with rising capital expenditures, projected at $16 billion for the fiscal year, and supply chain delays affecting cloud capacity expansion [11][12]. - Overall revenue growth for Oracle was modest at 6.4% year-over-year in Q3, with non-GAAP EPS increasing by only 4.3%, missing consensus estimates [13]. Group 4: Earnings Estimates Comparison - Salesforce has a better earnings surprise history, surpassing consensus estimates three times in the last four quarters with an average surprise of 4.4% [14]. - In contrast, Oracle missed consensus estimates three times in the same period, with an average surprise of only 0.8% [16]. - Analysts are more optimistic about Salesforce's profitability, with its long-term expected earnings growth at 12.7%, compared to Oracle's 9.7% [18].

Group 1 - The core viewpoint is that SAP is expected to continue delivering solid earnings growth, particularly through its successful execution of cloud strategies [1] - The investment approach emphasizes a fundamentals-based strategy, focusing on companies with long-term durability and robust balance sheets rather than merely low multiples [1] - There is a recognition that investing in successful companies carries risks, particularly regarding valuation, but vast development opportunities can lessen the immediate importance of price [1]

I’m a retired Wall Street PM specializing in TMT; since kickstarting my career, I’ve spent over two decades in the market navigating the technology landscape, focusing on risk mitigation through the dot com bubble, credit default of ‘08, and, more recently, with the AI boom. In one word, what I’d like my service to revolve around is momentum.Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within th ...

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Current cloud backlog increased by 29% to €18.2 billion in Q1 [5][37] - Quarterly cloud revenue grew by 26%, approaching the €5 billion mark [5][37] - Total revenue rose by 11% to €9 billion [42] - Operating profit surged by 58% to €2.5 billion, significantly exceeding the guidance for the year [41][45] - Cloud gross margin improved by 2.6 percentage points to 75% [6][40] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Cloud ERP suite revenue maintained high growth momentum with a 33% increase in Q1, accounting for 85% of total cloud revenue [37] - Software licenses decreased by only 10%, indicating resilience despite being a smaller quarter [38] - Approximately half of cloud order entries included AI use cases, reflecting strong demand for AI integration [13] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - Strong cloud revenue performance noted in APJ and EMEA regions, with Brazil, Germany, and India showing outstanding results [40] - The Americas region also demonstrated robust performance, with notable strength in Canada and the US [40] Company Strategy and Development Direction - Company emphasizes a suite-first, AI-first approach to expand its offerings [36] - Focus on product innovation, particularly with the launch of Business Data Cloud, which aims to unify and govern business data [22][23] - Continued investment in AI and cloud solutions to enhance customer productivity and reduce implementation costs [30][31] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expresses confidence in the company's resilience despite high market uncertainty [9][45] - The pipeline for the year remains solid, with no significant deterioration in conversion rates observed [56] - Management acknowledges potential risks from geopolitical tensions and trade disputes but maintains a positive outlook for long-term growth [44][120] Other Important Information - The company plans to provide deeper insights into its growth strategy at the upcoming Sapphire event in May [34][47] - The transformation program concluded in 2024, positioning the company for focused investments in key areas [36] Q&A Session Summary Question: Current trading and confidence in cloud revenue guidance - Management noted strong customer engagement and resilience in supply chains, which supports confidence in cloud revenue guidance despite macro uncertainties [52][56] Question: Deceleration in cloud revenue growth - Management explained that the deceleration was influenced by the timing of cloud deals and expected a rebound in Q2 as these deals ramp up [58][62] Question: Current cloud backlog performance - Current cloud backlog performance was in line with expectations, with no significant changes in customer dynamics despite tariff uncertainties [68][71] Question: Product innovation and Business Data Cloud differentiation - Management clarified that Business Data Cloud offers a more comprehensive solution than the previous SAP Datasphere, enabling better data integration and AI capabilities [78][83] Question: Impact of tariffs on business and cloud margins - Management indicated that while tariffs could impact hardware costs, the company's multi-cloud strategy provides price security and mitigates risks [130][132]

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Total revenue for Q1 2025 was $263 million, up 3% year-over-year [36] - Cloud revenue increased 21% to $94 million, while services revenue declined 8% to $121 million [37] - RPO ended the quarter at approximately $1.9 billion, up 25% year-over-year and 6% sequentially [38] - Adjusted operating profit was $91 million with an adjusted operating margin of 34.7%, up over 340 basis points year-over-year [40] - Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) for Q1 was $1.19, up 16%, while GAAP EPS was 85 cents, down 1% [41] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company experienced a 25% year-over-year increase in RPOs, driven by strong demand for mission-critical solutions [22] - Approximately 50% of new cloud bookings in Q1 were generated from net new logos, indicating strong demand for products [71] - Services team completed over 100 go-lives for customers in Q1, showcasing operational effectiveness [25] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The addressable market is forecasted to grow at a double-digit CAGR for the next several years, indicating robust market potential [15] - Competitive win rates remained consistent at about 70%, reflecting strong market positioning [24] - The company has established healthy footprints across diverse sectors including retail, grocery, life sciences, and technology [23] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focused on organic innovation and capital allocation strategy to expand its addressable market [14] - Investment in sales and marketing is prioritized to drive growth and capitalize on new product offerings [64] - The launch of new products like Enterprise Promise and Fulfill aims to optimize B2B order fulfillment, addressing evolving customer needs [26] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed caution regarding near-term services revenue growth due to macroeconomic uncertainties [21] - The company remains optimistic about its position in the market and long-term growth opportunities despite current challenges [20] - Management reiterated full-year guidance for RPO and total revenue, reflecting confidence in business fundamentals [45] Other Important Information - The company was named Google’s Cloud Business Applications Partner of the Year for supply chain and logistics, highlighting its innovation in the Google Cloud ecosystem [18] - The company ended the quarter with $206 million in cash and zero debt, indicating a strong balance sheet [42] Q&A Session Summary Question: Insights on cloud bookings and RPO dynamics - Management indicated strong pipeline in Q2 and confidence in guidance despite macro uncertainties [59][60] Question: Growth investments and monetization of products - Management plans to invest in sales specialists to drive growth and maintain high win rates [64] Question: Linear progression of bookings and sales activity - Management noted a balanced product portfolio and strong demand across verticals, with high expectations for Q2 [68][71] Question: Resilience of cloud bookings drivers - Management stated that no particular segment is more resilient, but all channels remain important for growth [78][80] Question: Visibility on multi-year ramps and growth trajectory - Management confirmed strong visibility into contract durations and ramp processes, supporting confidence in growth [95][97] Question: FX impact on guidance - Management indicated that FX swings represent less than 1% impact on revenue guidance [104][105] Question: Strength of large deals in the pipeline - Management reported favorable conditions in the pipeline, with confidence in closure rates compared to last year [111][112]