SAP (NYSE:SAP) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.07 EPS

SAP (NYSE:SAP) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The software maker reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.07, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $11.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.21 billion. SAP had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 19.92%.SAP’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from SAP’s conference call:

• SAP reported a strong Q1 — current cloud backlog rose 25% to €21.9bn, cloud revenue grew 27% (close to €6bn), total revenue was €9.6bn (+12%), and operating margin reached 30% (operating profit €2.9bn, +24%).
• Management positioned Business AI as the core strategic priority, announcing planned portfolio changes at Sapphire to embed SAP’s ERP domain knowledge into AI agents and signaling a gradual shift toward more consumption‑based cloud revenue rather than a disruptive transition.
• Executives cautioned that the ongoing Middle East conflict — and especially a prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz — could materially disrupt supply chains and customer spending, creating downside risk to 2026 bookings and cloud growth despite management maintaining guidance assuming near‑term de‑escalation.
• SAP cited concrete AI and productivity wins that support monetization and margin upside — customer examples (e.g., Daimler Trucks €70m impact) and faster ERP migrations with partners, plus internal gains (developers +30%, 20% of support tickets resolved autonomously) and a target of ~€2bn one‑way efficiencies by end‑2028.

SAP Stock Up 5.8%

NYSE SAP traded up $9.40 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $172.65. 3,612,266 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,216,107. The business’s 50-day moving average is $184.09 and its 200-day moving average is $223.38. SAP has a twelve month low of $160.66 and a twelve month high of $313.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.24.

SAP Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 5th will be given a dividend of $2.9291 per share. This represents a yield of 175.0%. This is a boost from SAP’s previous annual dividend of $2.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 5th. SAP’s payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Binnacle Investments Inc boosted its position in SAP by 14.2% during the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 338 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in SAP by 1.0% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 4,495 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,355,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in SAP by 19.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 308 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in SAP by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alaethes Wealth LLC boosted its position in SAP by 0.5% during the second quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC now owns 11,256 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $3,423,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter.

Key Headlines Impacting SAP

Here are the key news stories impacting SAP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on profit and solid revenue: SAP reported $1.99 EPS vs. $1.92 est. and revenue roughly in line with expectations, with operating profit up ~17% — the numbers beat consensus and underpin the rally. MarketBeat Q1 coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth is driving confidence: Current cloud backlog rose to €21.9B (+20%, +25% cc) and cloud revenue grew strongly (reported +19%, +27% cc), showing recurring revenue momentum that reduces cyclical risk. PR Newswire Quarterly Statement
• Positive Sentiment: Management message eases AI fears: CEO comments in media interviews stressed SAP’s AI-readiness and differentiated positioning, helping investors view SAP as a beneficiary — not a casualty — of AI disruption. CNBC CEO interview
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and rebound: Major outlets (WSJ, Barron’s, Bloomberg) frame the move as a rebound for SAP and the cloud segment after a weak software session, adding broader market context but not new fundamental data. WSJ coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials and call available: Investors can review the earnings slide deck and call transcript for details on guidance, segment trends and margins (useful for modelling but not new market-moving headlines). Slide deck
• Negative Sentiment: Some analyst target trims: BMO lowered its price target from $210 to $200 but kept an “outperform” rating, which signals cautious optimism but reduces upside expectations. Benzinga note
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts trimmed targets ahead of the print: Several brokers trimmed price targets before earnings, a reminder that consensus expectations and estimates remain in flux despite the beat. InsiderMonkey on target trims

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Santander raised SAP from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays reduced their price objective on SAP from $283.00 to $256.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of SAP in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup cut SAP from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, HSBC raised SAP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.75.

SAP Company Profile

SAP SE is a global enterprise software company headquartered in Walldorf, Germany. Founded in 1972 by five former IBM engineers, the company’s name is an acronym for Systeme, Anwendungen und Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung (Systems, Applications & Products in Data Processing). SAP develops and sells software and services that help organizations manage business processes across finance, human resources, procurement, manufacturing, supply chain and customer relationships.

SAP’s product portfolio spans on‑premises and cloud offerings, anchored by its enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions such as SAP S/4HANA and the SAP HANA in‑memory database and platform.