SAP's quarterly adjusted earnings per share rose 79% to €1.44 ($1.64). Analysts had expected earnings of €1.32 a share.
Christian Klein, the CEO of SAP, discusses the German software giant's first-quarter results.
SAP announced Wednesday that its first-quarter operating profit had risen by 58% year-on-year to hit 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion).
Shares surged after the business-software group posted operating profit that beat analysts' expectations and backed its full-year guidance, reassuring investors.
SAP extended its rally after reporting Q1 results and maintaining its full-year outlook, a port in the storm amid a very turbulent macroeconomy. SAP's consistency and its ability to maintain cloud growth rates have me more sanguine in the stock's prospects, and I'm upgrading the stock to a neutral rating. It's important to note that SAP's guidance, however, is on constant currency terms. The sharp rise in the euro will impact SAP heavily.
SAP SE (NYSE:SAP ) Q1 2025 Earnings Conference Call April 22, 2025 5:00 PM ET Company Participants Alexandra Steiger - Investor Relations Christian Klein - Chief Executive Officer Dominik Asam - Chief Financial Officer Conference Call Participants Michael Briest - UBS Ben Castillo - BNP Paribas Toby Ogg - JPMorgan Charlie Brennan - Jefferies Mohammed Moawalla - Goldman Sachs Adam Wood - Morgan Stanley Jackson Ader - KeyBanc Capital Markets Frederic Boulan - Bank of America Mark Moerdler - Bernstein Research Sven Merkt - Barclays Keith Bachman - BMO Alexandra Steiger Good evening, everyone, and welcome. Thank you for joining us.
Sales from the business-software company's core cloud business rose to 4.99 billion euros from 3.93 billion euros while total revenue rose to 9.01 billion euros compared with 8.04 billion euros in the prior-year period.
SAP's first-quarter performance is expected to have been cushioned by steady momentum in the cloud business amid prevailing global macroeconomic turbulence.
The latest tariffs have intensified market volatility, with tech stocks underperforming, yet the sector's valuation correction presents a lower risk of further massive corrections. SAP's robust cloud growth, driven by AI and ERP advancements, has led to significant revenue increases, outperforming peers and contributing to strong future guidance. Despite a decline in SAP's 2024 operating profit due to restructuring, the company forecasts a substantial profit rebound in 2025, bolstered by cloud and AI technologies.
Software-maker SAP became Europe's most valuable company this week, riding a wave of artificial intelligence enthusiasm and German stock market gains. CEO Christian Klein previously told CNBC that SAP had the "richest business data set of all tech companies" which was allowing it to deliver a multitude of new AI services.
German software giant SAP has overtaken Denmark's Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) to become Europe's largest company by market cap. SAP's market cap of $340 billion edged past the maker of weightloss drugs, according to Reuters calculations using LSEG data.
German software company SAP overtook Danish healthcare company Novo Nordisk as Europe's largest company by market cap on Monday.