Workday Announces Fiscal 2024 Second Quarter Financial Results

Fiscal Second Quarter Total Revenues of $1.79 Billion, Up 16.3% Year Over Year
Subscription Revenues of $1.62 Billion, Up 18.8% Year Over Year
24-Month Subscription Revenue Backlog of $10.27 Billion, Up 22.7% Year Over Year
Total Subscription Revenue Backlog of $17.85 Billion, Up 32.5% Year Over Year

PLEASANTON, Calif., Aug. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ: WDAY), a leader in enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources, today announced results for the fiscal 2024 second quarter ended July 31, 2023.

Fiscal 2024 Second Quarter Results

Total revenues were $1.79 billion, an increase of 16.3% from the second quarter of fiscal 2023. Subscription revenues were $1.62 billion, an increase of 18.8% from the same period last year.Operating income was $36.3 million, or 2.0% of revenues, compared to an operating loss of $34.1 million, or negative 2.2% of revenues, in the same period last year. Non-GAAP operating income for the second quarter was $421.4 million, or 23.6% of revenues, compared to a non-GAAP operating income of $301.6 million, or 19.6% of revenues, in the same period last year.1Basic and diluted net income per share was $0.30, compared to basic and diluted net loss per share of $0.25 in the second quarter of fiscal 2023. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per share was $1.45 and $1.43, respectively, compared to non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per share of $0.86 and $0.83, respectively, in the same period last year.2Operating cash flows were $425.3 million compared to $114.4 million in the prior year.Cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $6.66 billion as of July 31, 2023.

Comments on the News

“We’re incredibly well positioned going into the second half of our fiscal year as Workday is increasingly seen as the system of trust for enterprises around the world,” said Carl Eschenbach, co-CEO, Workday. “Our customers – now representing more than 65 million users under contract – rely on Workday to manage critical business processes. Our growing customer base, continued global expansion, industry growth, and partner ecosystem momentum set us up for durable long-term success. These factors, combined with the diversity of our products, the strength of our value proposition, and our winning culture make Workday one of the most enduring software businesses of our time.”

“Workday delivered another strong quarter, driven by our ongoing focus on employees, customers, and innovation – including our leadership in AI and ML,” said Aneel Bhusri, co-founder, co-CEO, and chair, Workday. “We’re seeing continued momentum with more than 3,000 customers sharing their data with our ML models, more than 50 million ML inferences processed per day, and multiple generative AI capabilities in development including several that we plan to unveil next month at Workday Rising. We believe this momentum will continue to grow as more companies look to Workday as their trusted partner in responsible implementation of AI and ML.”

“The strength of our Q2 results and momentum going into the second half of our fiscal year highlight the compelling opportunity ahead for Workday,” said Zane Rowe, chief financial officer, Workday. “We are raising our fiscal 2024 subscription revenue guidance to a range of $6.570 billion to $6.590 billion, representing 18% year-over-year growth. We expect third-quarter subscription revenue to be $1.678 billion to $1.680 billion, or 17% growth. In addition, we are raising our fiscal 2024 non-GAAP operating margin guidance to 23.5%, and we plan on maintaining a disciplined approach of investing in long-term growth while expanding margins.”

Recent Highlights

Workday announced continued momentum for Workday Financial Management with new customers including KinderCare, Metropolitan Community College, Nordic Consulting Inc., Palomar Health, and The Medical College of Wisconsin. Workday also announced new Workday Human Capital Management (HCM) customers including Commercial Vehicle Group, Mercy Aged and Community Care, SoftwareOne AG, and Symrise AG.Workday saw continued momentum across its net new and existing customer base, surpassing 65 million users and more than 5,000 core Workday Financial Management and Workday HCM customers.Workday saw notable industry growth in Q2, with retail and hospitality joining financial services at $1 billion in annual recurring revenue.Workday demonstrated continued leadership in AI and ML, announcing the company’s generative AI strategy, and its work with policymakers to help shape the European Parliament’s amendments to the proposed AI Act.Workday named a Customers’ Choice in the 2023 Gartner Peer InsightsTM Voice of the Customer for Financial Planning Software report.3Workday Adaptive Planning was recognized by SIIA as Best Financial Management Solution. Workday HCM was also named a leader in The Forrester WaveTM: Human Capital Management Q2 2023.Workday continued to add to its leadership bench with the appointment of Emma Chalwin to chief marketing officer.

Earnings Call Details

Workday plans to host a conference call today to review its fiscal 2024 second quarter financial results and to discuss its financial outlook. The call is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. PT/4:30 p.m. ET and can be accessed via webcast. The webcast will be available live, and a replay will be available following completion of the live broadcast for approximately 90 days.

Workday uses the Workday Blog as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.

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About Workday

Workday is a leading provider of enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources, helping customers adapt and thrive in a changing world. Workday applications for financial management, human resources, planning, spend management, and analytics are built with artificial intelligence and machine learning at the core to help organizations around the world embrace the future of work. Workday is used by more than 10,000 organizations around the world and across industries – from medium-sized businesses to more than 50% of the Fortune 500. For more information about Workday, visit workday.com.

© 2023 Workday, Inc. All rights reserved. Workday and the Workday logo are registered trademarks of Workday, Inc. All other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to Workday’s financial results as determined in accordance with GAAP are included at the end of this press release following the accompanying financial data. For a description of these non-GAAP financial measures, including the reasons management uses each measure, please see the section of the tables titled “About Non-GAAP Financial Measures.” The Company has not provided a reconciliation of its forward outlook for non-GAAP operating margin with its forward-looking GAAP operating margin in reliance on the unreasonable efforts exception provided under Item 10(e)(1)(i)(B) of Regulation S-K. The Company is unable, without unreasonable efforts, to quantify share-based compensation expense, which is excluded from our non-GAAP operating margin, as it requires additional inputs such as the number of shares granted and market prices that are not ascertainable.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements including, among other things, statements regarding Workday’s full-year fiscal 2024 subscription revenues and non-GAAP operating margin, third quarter subscription revenue, growth and expansion, innovation, momentum, opportunity, demand, strategy, and investments. These forward-looking statements are based only on currently available information and our current beliefs, expectations, and assumptions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions, and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. If the risks materialize, assumptions prove incorrect, or we experience unexpected changes in circumstances, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements, and therefore you should not rely on any forward-looking statements. Risks include, but are not limited to: (i) breaches in our security measures or those of our third-party providers, unauthorized access to our customers’ or other users’ personal data, or disruptions in our data center or computing infrastructure operations; (ii) service outages, delays in the deployment of our applications, and the failure of our applications to perform properly; (iii) the impact of recent macroeconomic events, including inflation and rising interest rates, on our business, as well as our customers, prospects, partners, and service providers; (iv) our ability to manage our growth effectively; (v) competitive factors, including pricing pressures, industry consolidation, entry of new competitors and new applications, advancements in technology, and marketing initiatives by our competitors; (vi) the development of the market for enterprise cloud applications and services; (vii) acceptance of our applications and services by customers and individuals, including any new features, enhancements, and modifications, as well as the acceptance of any underlying technology such as machine learning and artificial intelligence; (viii) our ability to implement our plans, objectives, and other expectations with respect to any of our acquired companies; (ix) the regulatory risks related to new and evolving technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence; (x) our reliance on our network of partners to drive additional growth of our revenues; (xi) adverse changes in general economic or market conditions; (xii) the regulatory, economic, and political risks associated with our domestic and international operations; (xiii) delays or reductions in information technology spending; and (xiv) changes in sales, which may not be immediately reflected in our results due to our subscription model. Further information on these and additional risks that could affect Workday’s results is included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended July 31, 2023, and other reports that we have filed and will file with the SEC from time to time, which could cause actual results to vary from expectations. Workday assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

Any unreleased services, features, or functions referenced in this document, our website, or other press releases or public statements that are not currently available are subject to change at Workday’s discretion and may not be delivered as planned or at all. Customers who purchase Workday services should make their purchase decisions based upon services, features, and functions that are currently available.

About Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To provide investors and others with additional information regarding Workday’s results, we have disclosed the following non-GAAP financial measures: non-GAAP operating income (loss), non-GAAP operating margin, and non-GAAP net income (loss) per share. Workday has provided a reconciliation of each non-GAAP financial measure used in this earnings release to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Non-GAAP operating income (loss) and non-GAAP operating margin differ from GAAP in that they exclude share-based compensation expenses, employer payroll tax-related items on employee stock transactions, and amortization expense for acquisition-related intangible assets. Non-GAAP net income (loss) per share differs from GAAP in that it excludes share-based compensation expenses, employer payroll tax-related items on employee stock transactions, amortization expense for acquisition-related intangible assets, and income tax effects.

Workday’s management uses these non-GAAP financial measures to understand and compare operating results across accounting periods, for internal budgeting and forecasting purposes, for short- and long-term operating plans, and to evaluate Workday’s financial performance. Management believes these non-GAAP financial measures reflect Workday’s ongoing business in a manner that allows for meaningful period-to-period comparisons and analysis of trends in Workday’s business. Management also believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors and others in understanding and evaluating Workday’s operating results and prospects in the same manner as management and in comparing financial results across accounting periods and to those of peer companies.

Management believes excluding the following items from the GAAP Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations is useful to investors and others in assessing Workday’s operating performance due to the following factors:

Share-based compensation expenses. Although share-based compensation is an important aspect of the compensation of our employees and executives, management believes it is useful to exclude share-based compensation expenses to better understand the long-term performance of our core business and to facilitate comparison of our results to those of peer companies. Share-based compensation expenses are determined using a number of factors, including our stock price, volatility, and forfeiture rates, that are beyond our control and generally unrelated to operational decisions and performance in any particular period. Further, share-based compensation expenses are not reflective of the value ultimately received by the grant recipients.Other operating expenses. Other operating expenses includes employer payroll tax-related items on employee stock transactions and amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets. The amount of employer payroll tax-related items on employee stock transactions is dependent on our stock price and other factors that are beyond our control and do not correlate to the operation of the business. For business combinations, we generally allocate a portion of the purchase price to intangible assets. The amount of the allocation is based on estimates and assumptions made by management and is subject to amortization. The amount of purchase price allocated to intangible assets and the term of its related amortization can vary significantly and are unique to each acquisition and thus we do not believe it is reflective of ongoing operations. Although we exclude the amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets from these non-GAAP measures, management believes that it is important for investors to understand that such intangible assets were recorded as part of purchase accounting and contribute to revenue generation.Income tax effects. We utilize a fixed long-term projected tax rate in our computation of the non-GAAP income tax provision to provide better consistency across the reporting periods. In projecting this long-term non-GAAP tax rate, we utilize a three-year financial projection that excludes the direct impact of share-based compensation and related employer payroll taxes, amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets, and amortization of debt discount and issuance costs. The projected rate considers other factors such as our current operating structure, existing tax positions in various jurisdictions, and key legislation in major jurisdictions where we operate. For fiscal 2024 and 2023, we determined the projected non-GAAP tax rate to be 19%, which reflects currently available information, as well as other factors and assumptions. We will periodically re-evaluate this tax rate, as necessary, for significant events, based on our ongoing analysis of the 2017 U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, relevant tax law changes, material changes in the forecasted geographic earnings mix, and any significant acquisitions.

The use of non-GAAP operating income (loss), non-GAAP operating margin, and non-GAAP net income (loss) per share measures have certain limitations as they do not reflect all items of expense that affect Workday’s operations. Workday compensates for these limitations by reconciling the non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for or in isolation from, measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Further, these non-GAAP measures may differ from the non-GAAP information used by other companies, including peer companies, and therefore comparability may be limited. Management encourages investors and others to review Workday’s financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.

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SOURCE Workday Inc.