At least one Wall Street ******* yst is skeptical that private equity firm Silver Lake will pull off a deal to acquire software maker Workday (WDAY). Workday stock popped on Feb. 13 amid reports of Silver Lake's interest but has cooled off the next two trading sessions.
In early 2026, Workday Cofounder and Executive Chairman Aneel Bhusri returned as chief executive officer. Slowing subscription revenue growth has pressured Workday stock. UBS ******* yst Karl Keirstead in a report on Monday said that private equity firm Silver Lake in unlikely to buy out the enterprise software maker.
"From the perspective of Workday, the founder only returned to the CEO role in February with an apparent mission to invest in the AI suite and accelerate growth," Keirstead said. "For him (and the board) to turn around in a matter of months and negotiate a sale, at a historically depressed free cash flow multiple and before any material time for Workday to realize any upside from these investments, strikes us as very surprising."
Second-quarter earnings are due for Workday stock on Aug. 27.
Other software stocks, including SAP (SAP) and Oracle (ORCL), climbed last week amid speculation over a Workday buyout. There has been growing investor concern that software-as-a-service companies could be disrupted by artificial intelligence-driven competition, an event referred to as a" SaaSpocalypse."
#private
In early 2026, Workday Cofounder and Executive Chairman Aneel Bhusri returned as chief executive officer. Slowing subscription revenue growth has pressured Workday stock. UBS ******* yst Karl Keirstead in a report on Monday said that private equity firm Silver Lake in unlikely to buy out the enterprise software maker.
"From the perspective of Workday, the founder only returned to the CEO role in February with an apparent mission to invest in the AI suite and accelerate growth," Keirstead said. "For him (and the board) to turn around in a matter of months and negotiate a sale, at a historically depressed free cash flow multiple and before any material time for Workday to realize any upside from these investments, strikes us as very surprising."
Second-quarter earnings are due for Workday stock on Aug. 27.
Other software stocks, including SAP (SAP) and Oracle (ORCL), climbed last week amid speculation over a Workday buyout. There has been growing investor concern that software-as-a-service companies could be disrupted by artificial intelligence-driven competition, an event referred to as a" SaaSpocalypse."
#private
2 months ago
