Teradata (TDC) 2025 Conference Transcript

Teradata (TDC) 2025 Conference Summary Company Overview - Company: Teradata (TDC) - Event: Citi Tech Conference, September 4, 2025 - Speaker: John Ederer, CFO Key Points Company and Industry Context - Teradata is undergoing a business model transformation towards cloud and subscription services, with a focus on AI and data modernization [5][9][10] - The software market is experiencing challenges, particularly in application sectors, but data-related services are showing healthy results [12][13] Financial Performance and Strategy - FY '24 faced challenges, but the company is stabilizing in FY '25 and setting up for growth in FY '26 and beyond [9][11] - Priorities include driving a profitable growth strategy and improving the "Rule of 40" metric, which combines growth rate and profit margin [10][11] - The company aims to achieve durable free cash flow growth, with guidance indicating flat operating margins year-over-year despite headwinds [41][42] AI and Market Trends - Increased demand for AI is reshaping the market, leading to a natural rebalancing of IT investments [14][15] - Teradata is seeing a shift in customer demand towards secure and efficient AI deployment at scale, which bodes well for its business [15][16] - The company is experiencing enthusiasm around new product announcements, such as Enterprise Vector Store and AI Factory, which are positively influencing the sales pipeline [18][19] Customer Engagement and Retention - Improved customer engagement and retention strategies are yielding better results, with a focus on early identification of risk factors [25][26] - The company has seen a reduction in migration dependence, indicating a shift towards hybrid environments where customers can invest in AI without full migration [29][30] Competitive Landscape - Teradata is positioning itself uniquely with a hybrid solution that combines on-premise and cloud capabilities, appealing to customers' needs for efficiency and scalability [62][64] - The competitive landscape includes players like Databricks and Snowflake, but Teradata's focus on hybrid solutions is seen as a differentiator [62][66] Capital Allocation and Shareholder Returns - The company is committed to returning 50% of its free cash flow to shareholders through stock buybacks, indicating confidence in its financial health [79][80] - There is a recognition of the need to balance growth opportunities with shareholder returns [79] Organizational Changes - Recent restructuring efforts have optimized the marketing organization and improved alignment between product development and sales, enhancing overall execution [40][55] - New leadership has been brought in to drive improvements in go-to-market strategies and customer engagement [54][55] Future Outlook - The company is optimistic about returning to positive growth and achieving double-digit growth in the future, driven by AI and hybrid platform opportunities [37][38] - Continued investments in product development and market strategies are essential for long-term growth and shareholder value [46][47] Additional Insights - Teradata is actively pursuing new logo opportunities in both on-premise and cloud environments, indicating a balanced approach to market expansion [72][73] - The company is leveraging AI internally to improve efficiencies, although quantifying specific savings remains challenging [51][52] This summary encapsulates the key insights and strategic directions discussed during the Teradata conference, highlighting the company's focus on growth, AI integration, and shareholder value.