SAP: shares up after preliminary results beat consensus

(CercleFinance.com) - SAP shares rose on Friday after the business software provider announced preliminary fourth-quarter results that beat expectations.


The German company said its non-IFRS operating profit fell by 3% to 2.77 billion euros in the past quarter, although was up 3% at constant currencies, above the consensus of 2.64 billion euros.

The Walldorf-based group said total revenue fell 6% year-on-year to 7.54 billion euros, down 2% at constant currencies, against the consensus of 7.45 billion euros.

SAP noted that its business performance "sequentially improved" in the fourth quarter, even as the Covid-19 crisis persisted and lockdowns were reintroduced in many countries.

Cloud revenue - a closely watched metric of the company's performance, - rose by 8% year-on-year, and was up 13% at constant currencies.

In addition, the company issued a 2021 outlook that was in line with analysts' estimates.

SAP said it expects its full-year operating profit to be between 7.8 billion and 8.2 billion euros, based on calculations that aren't recognised under international financial reporting standards (IFRS)

The software maker also said it expects cloud revenue of between 9.1 billion euros and 9.5 billion euros this year, up 13% to 18% at constant currencies

Following the news, SAP shares rose over 1% on Friday, the biggest gainer on Frankfurt's DAX blue-chip index.

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