Jefferies Downgrades Multiple Enterprise Software Firms
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Feb 23 2026
0mins
Should l Buy WDAY?
Source: seekingalpha
- Jefferies Downgrade: Investment firm Jefferies downgraded Workday, Docusign, monday.com, and Freshworks to Hold due to concerns over AI-related risks, leading to pre-market declines of 1.5% for Workday and nearly 2%, 3%, and 3% for Docusign, monday.com, and Freshworks, respectively.
- Workday Execution Risk: Analyst Brent Thill highlighted execution risks for Workday, downgrading its rating from Buy to Hold and slashing the price target from $325 to $150, reflecting concerns about CEO Aneel Bhusri's return and the potential need to lower expectations again.
- Docusign Growth Slowdown: Thill noted that Docusign's growth re-acceleration may take longer than expected, with its Intelligent Agreement Management platform needing to prove itself, resulting in a downgrade from Buy to Hold and a price target cut from $105 to $45, indicating caution about future growth.
- Uncertain Outlook for monday.com and Freshworks: Thill described a hazy outlook for monday.com’s small and medium-sized enterprise segments, downgrading it from Buy to Hold with a price target cut from $260 to $80; similarly, Freshworks faces AI and competition risks, also downgraded to Hold with a price target reduction from $20 to $8, reflecting market concerns over its core customer experience software business.
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Analyst Views on WDAY
Wall Street analysts forecast WDAY stock price to rise
31 Analyst Rating
22 Buy
9 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 133.760
Low
235.00
Averages
275.19
High
325.00
Current: 133.760
Low
235.00
Averages
275.19
High
325.00
About WDAY
Workday, Inc. is a provider of an artificial intelligence (AI) platform to help organizations manage their people, money, and agents. The Company provides over 11,000 organizations with cloud solutions powered by AI to help solve business challenges, including supporting and empowering their workforce, managing their finances and spending in an ever-changing environment, and planning for the unexpected. It offers Financial Management, Spend Management, Human Capital Management (HCM), Planning, and Analytics applications. The Company sells its solutions worldwide primarily through direct sales. It also offers professional services, both directly and through its Workday Services Partners, to help customers deploy its solutions. It offers businesses flexible solutions to help them adapt to their industry-specific needs and respond to change. It serves various industries, including professional and business services, financial services, healthcare, education, government, and others.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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See More
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- Strong Earnings: Workday's Q4 revenue increased by 14.5% year-over-year to $2.53 billion, surpassing analyst expectations of $2.52 billion, demonstrating resilience in the SaaS market.
- AI Solutions Growth: The new annual contract value for AI solutions doubled to $100 million in the quarter, with annual recurring revenue exceeding $400 million, indicating the growing importance of AI in its business model.
- Robust Cash Flow: The company generated $2.9 billion in operating cash flow and $2.8 billion in free cash flow for the year, reflecting strong financial health despite $3 billion in debt.
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See More
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- Cloudflare Earnings Highlight: Cloudflare reported a 34% revenue growth this quarter, exceeding expectations, with large customers contributing 73% of total revenue, indicating strong performance in cybersecurity and application development, and is expected to maintain a 28% growth rate moving forward.
- Airbnb's Unexpected Bounce: Despite missing earnings expectations, Airbnb's stock rose due to low market expectations, with projected double-digit revenue growth in 2026, showcasing resilience amid macroeconomic pressures.
- Shopify's Sustained Growth: Shopify achieved a 30% revenue increase this quarter, surpassing $100 billion in gross merchandise volume for the first time, although trading at over 150 times earnings, the market remains optimistic about its future growth potential in the e-commerce sector.
- AI's Impact on Logistics: A recent claim by a company that its AI platform can enhance trucking efficiency by 300% led to a 20% drop in logistics stocks, reflecting the market's heightened sensitivity to the potential disruptive effects of AI technology in traditional industries, necessitating cautious evaluation by investors.
See More
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- Cloudflare Earnings Highlights: Cloudflare reported a 34% revenue growth in its latest earnings, exceeding its own guidance, showcasing strong performance in cybersecurity and application development, with expectations of maintaining a 28% growth in the coming year, indicating the company's increasing competitiveness in the market.
- Significant Contribution from Large Customers: Revenue contribution from Cloudflare's large customers (paying over $100,000 annually) grew by 42%, now accounting for 73% of total revenue, up from 69% a year ago, demonstrating the company's appeal and enhanced customer stickiness within high-value client segments.
- Shopify Growth and Valuation: Shopify's quarterly revenue grew by 30%, surpassing $100 billion in gross merchandise volume for the first time, although its stock price fell due to high valuation, its market share and growth potential in the e-commerce sector remain strong, likely to continue attracting investor interest.
- Airbnb Earnings and Market Reaction: Despite Airbnb missing earnings expectations this quarter, its stock rose, reflecting market optimism about its future double-digit revenue growth, indicating that investor confidence in its long-term growth potential remains intact.
See More
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Market Risks: Principal research analyst Aurelie Bartheere highlights that most negative news affecting cryptocurrency markets has already been priced in, with the primary risk being weaknesses in U.S. technology equities, which could impact Bitcoin's price significantly.
Bitcoin Price Fluctuations: Bitcoin is currently trading between $60,000 and $70,000, and analysts are monitoring for signs of trend reversal, as a sharp drop in U.S. tech equities could lead to Bitcoin falling below $60,000.
Stock Market Performance: Software stocks have been the biggest drag on the S&P 500 this year, with notable losses from companies like Intuit and Workday, contributing to a cautious sentiment in the market.
Geopolitical Tensions: Rising geopolitical tensions, particularly between the U.S. and Iran, have led to a decline in Bitcoin's price, reflecting broader market volatility and uncertainty in the cryptocurrency sector.
See More
Investors Rotate Out of Tech Stocks as Nasdaq Drops Over 4%
- Market Turmoil in Tech: Investors rotated out of tech stocks in February due to concerns over AI disrupting established industries, leading to a more than 4% drop in the Nasdaq Composite, indicating uncertainty about future growth prospects.
- Nvidia Buying Opportunity: Despite a roughly 5% pullback in Nvidia's (NVDA) share price following its quarterly earnings, analysts see strong demand in data centers, with hyperscalers expected to spend around $650 billion on AI workloads, creating significant revenue opportunities for Nvidia.
- Salesforce Growth Concerns: Nancy Tengler, CEO of Laffer Tengler Investments, noted that Salesforce (CRM) lacks a compelling growth trajectory, prompting her firm to exit the stock, reflecting broader market worries about the future of software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies.
- Positive Outlook for Memory Stocks: Amid surging demand for AI workloads, memory stocks like Micron (MU) and Western Digital (WDC) have risen 60% year-to-date, showcasing strong market interest in this sector, even as the overall tech software ETF has declined 24% since January.
See More
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- Strong Financial Performance: Workday's Q4 revenue increased by 14.5% year-over-year to $2.53 billion, with subscription revenue rising nearly 16% to $2.36 billion, and adjusted EPS jumping 29% to $2.47, surpassing analyst expectations and demonstrating resilience in the market.
- Accelerated AI Solutions: The company saw new annual contract value for AI solutions double to $100 million in the quarter, with annual recurring revenue exceeding $400 million, indicating that Workday's investments in AI are beginning to pay off and enhancing its competitive position.
- Robust Cash Flow: At the end of the quarter, Workday had $5.4 billion in cash and marketable securities, with $3 billion in debt, generating operating cash flow of $2.9 billion and free cash flow of $2.8 billion for the year, showcasing strong financial management and providing ample funds for future investments.
- Cautious Future Outlook: Although the company forecasts Q1 subscription revenue growth of 13% to about $2.335 billion, below the $2.35 billion consensus, its full-year subscription revenue is expected to be between $9.925 billion and $9.95 billion, reflecting management's cautious stance on market prospects, which may impact investor confidence.
See More
