SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) stock surged in pre-market trading this morning after the company released its earnings report for the three months ended September 30. The firm showed earnings of 78 Euro cents per share on revenue totaling $.06 billion Euro. SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) Stock rose by more than 6% on its home exchange in Frankfurt this morning.
This morning’s earnings announcement was not an incredible beat on analyst expectations, but it made SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) look strong in comparison with rivals. International Business Machines Corp (NYSE:IBM) missed earnings by a wide margin last week. The company reported that the United States and Europe were soft, while China had been disastrous through the quarter.
SAP earnings
This morning’s earnings were not all that impressive. Analysts were expecting SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) to record 4.16 billion in revenue for the period, and that wasn’t the only miss contained in the report. It seems unlikely that the company will hit its revenue targets for the full year when it delivers its numbers for the December quarter.
SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) doesn’t operate in a vacuum however, and that appears to be the reason behind the rise in the firm’s value this morning. The software company outperformed other business IT outfits, and that makes it appear more valuable in the eyes of the market.
SAP performance
This morning’s prodigious rise will come as a relief to the many investors who have watched shares in SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) slump in 2013. On Friday’s close shares in the business software maker were down by more than 11% for the year since January 1. The company has not had it easy, but this quarter makes it appear as if its fortunes are turning around.
The future of business services is not easy to predict. There are many companies just breaking into the sector, and many more who are depressed after years of operation. Sluggish global recovery will hurt SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) (FRA:SAP) (ETR:SAP) going forward, but it may be well positioned for growth in future.
