Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) Price Target Raised to $190.00 at Piper Sandler

Key Points

• Piper Sandler raised Workday’s price target to $190 from $145 but maintained a “neutral” rating, implying roughly 1.84% downside from the prior close. Analysts overall hold a consensus “Hold” rating with an average target of $194.81.
• Workday exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $2.75 versus a $2.61 consensus and revenue of $2.65 billion, up 12.8% year over year.
• Growth concerns and insider selling remain key risks: projected subscription-revenue growth near 11% for fiscal 2028 suggests continued deceleration, while insiders sold $113.9 million of shares during the latest quarter.

Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by stock analysts at Piper Sandler from $145.00 to $190.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the software maker's stock. Piper Sandler's price target suggests a potential downside of 1.84% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on WDAY. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Workday in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Workday in a report on Thursday, August 20th. HC Wainwright set a $140.00 price target on Workday in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Workday in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Workday from $140.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Workday has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $194.81.

Workday Stock Performance

WDAY stock opened at $193.57 on Friday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $155.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $140.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Workday has a 12-month low of $110.36 and a 12-month high of $249.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.81 billion, a PE ratio of 60.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.08.

Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 27th. The software maker reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.14. Workday had a return on equity of 14.75% and a net margin of 8.60%.The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.21 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Workday will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Workday

In related news, CFO Zane Rowe sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.70, for a total transaction of $862,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 288,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,451,702. This trade represents a 2.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, major shareholder David A. Duffield sold 107,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.74, for a total value of $14,699,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 105,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,364,400.26. This represents a 50.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 875,020 shares of company stock valued at $113,938,503. 18.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Workday

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of Workday by 11,770.8% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 36,907,426 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $4,518,207,000 after buying an additional 36,596,516 shares during the last quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Workday during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,178,000. Wedmont Private Capital grew its position in shares of Workday by 25.9% during the second quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,751 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $337,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. Kintra Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Workday during the second quarter valued at about $499,000. Finally, Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Workday by 84.2% in the second quarter. Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC now owns 6,571 shares of the software maker's stock worth $804,000 after purchasing an additional 3,003 shares during the last quarter. 89.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Workday News

Here are the key news stories impacting Workday this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Workday reported fiscal Q2 adjusted EPS of $2.75, above the roughly $2.61–$2.62 consensus, while revenue reached $2.649 billion, slightly exceeding estimates and increasing 12.8% year over year. Workday Surpasses Q2 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Subscription revenue climbed 13.9% to $2.471 billion. Management also said AI-related offerings represented more than 25% of new contract value, reinforcing the company’s positioning in enterprise AI for HR, finance and IT. Workday Fiscal 2027 Second-Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability was a major strength: net income reportedly rose to $632 million from $228 million a year earlier, while operating profit increased 26.2%. Workday also authorized an additional $4 billion share repurchase, which could support per-share results and signal confidence in cash generation. Workday Reports Higher Profit and Revenue
• Positive Sentiment: Canaccord Genuity raised its price target to $225, adding to bullish sentiment following the earnings beat. Canaccord Raises Workday Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Management’s outlook broadly met expectations and targets at least two points of non-GAAP margin expansion, but investors are watching whether AI adoption can offset slower growth in the coming years. Workday Signals Future Growth and Margin Targets
• Negative Sentiment: Workday’s projected subscription-revenue growth near 11% for fiscal 2028 implies continued deceleration from current levels, raising valuation concerns for a stock trading at a premium earnings multiple. Workday Outlook Despite AI Demand
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider activity was heavily weighted toward selling, including substantial sales by founder David Duffield. While such transactions may be planned, they can weigh on investor sentiment.

Workday Company Profile

Workday, Inc NASDAQ: WDAY is a provider of cloud-based enterprise applications focused on human capital management (HCM) and financial management. Founded in 2005 by Dave Duffield and Aneel Bhusri following their tenure at PeopleSoft, the company develops software-as-a-service solutions that help organizations manage workforce and financial processes in a unified, cloud-native environment. Workday's platform emphasizes continuous updates, data security, and a configurable architecture aimed at large and mid-sized enterprises.

The company's product portfolio centers on Workday Human Capital Management and Workday Financial Management, with additional offerings for payroll, talent management, workforce planning and analytics.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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