PLEASANTON, California, May 2, 2026, 09:04 PDT
- Workday plans to release its fiscal 2027 first-quarter results after the closing bell on May 21.
- The update puts its subscription model to the test—those ongoing software fees make up the bulk of its revenue.
- Stock finished Friday at $126.96, gaining 3.73%. Enterprise software names have been swinging around lately.
Workday Inc. has set May 21 for its fiscal 2027 first-quarter earnings release, planning to drop numbers after the bell. Investors are watching to see how the software company’s subscription business—and new AI efforts—are holding up. The Pleasanton, California outfit scheduled a call for 1:30 p.m. Pacific to go through results and provide its outlook.
Timing is key here: investors are looking for signs that Workday might stabilize demand after its more cautious fiscal 2027 subscription revenue outlook from February. The company had guided to first-quarter subscription revenue of $2.335 billion, a 13% increase, and put its fiscal 2027 target at $9.925 billion to $9.950 billion. That’s 12% to 13% growth.
Workday shares settled at $126.96 on Friday, tacking on 3.73%, though the stock remains weighed down. Worries are mounting that emerging AI products might start eroding demand for conventional HR and finance software—a concern that’s left little margin for error.
Workday’s annual results showed growth but didn’t quiet skeptics. The company’s revenue climbed 13% to $9.55 billion for fiscal 2026, according to a filing. Subscription services brought in $8.83 billion, up 14%.
Since stepping back in as chief executive in February, Aneel Bhusri has leaned into the idea of AI as a new beginning, not something to fear. “AI gives us the chance to do it all again,” Bhusri said in February’s results release, drawing a line back to Workday’s early move to shift HR and finance to the cloud. Workday Investor Relations
The debate is shifting into evidence mode. After Workday’s Innovation Summit in April, Guy Currier at Futurum Group pointed out the central question: can Workday’s “guardrails-first architecture” actually set it apart as enterprise AI heats up? Agentic AI comes down to this—software agents that handle business workflows, cutting back on the amount of human intervention required at every step. Futurum
Workday is still pushing its storyline through new products. On April 28, its Workday Government arm announced a Personnel Action Request agent, touting as much as a 60% reduction in federal HR cycle times. “Legacy, paper-based processes” are holding agencies back, said Lynn Martin, who heads Workday Government. Newsroom | Workday
It’s a packed space. Workday’s most recent annual filing flagged Oracle and SAP as its main rivals in both financial management and human capital management software, adding that broad large language models and general-purpose agents might up the competitive pressure.
The May report might end up a double-edged sword. Back in February, Reuters pointed out that closing big Workday deals—particularly those tied to government and healthcare—was taking longer than usual. After Workday’s annual subscription revenue outlook fell short, over half the analysts tracking the stock trimmed their price targets.
Investors want proof that tighter spending isn’t hurting performance. In its annual filing, Workday disclosed a February 2026 restructuring plan to cut roughly 2% of its staff, this coming after a broader restructuring laid out for fiscal 2026. The company said it recorded approximately $303 million in fiscal 2026 restructuring costs.
On May 21, investors’ focus will be tight: subscription revenue, backlog levels, margins, and whether AI offerings are starting to shift customer demand. Workday notes it’s working with more than 11,500 organizations worldwide—including over 65% of the Fortune 500—so if its AI push works, there’s a significant audience already in place.
