SAP Wins Two Marquee Cloud Clients as Buyback Runs and Analysts Stay Cautious
Published on 09/19/2026 at 11:01 | Editorial boerse-global.de
SAP's cloud push is reaching audiences well beyond the factory floor. Within days, the Walldorf-based software group unveiled two flagship wins: U.S. aerospace and defense giant Lockheed Martin will run its company-wide HR transformation on SAP SuccessFactors, while esports organization Team Liquid has adopted the SAP Business Data Cloud to sharpen player performance through data analytics. Together the deals underscore a broader trend — large international organizations are migrating core processes into SAP's cloud architecture.
The operational momentum shows up in the numbers. In the second quarter, SAP's current cloud backlog climbed 26% at constant currencies to EUR 22.9 billion, while total cloud revenue rose 24% on the same basis, powered by the company's ERP suite.
A Dual Play on Capital
Alongside the client announcements, SAP kept up its share-maintenance program. A Monday exchange filing set out fresh capital-market information on the execution of share buybacks. On the insider side, board member Sebastian Steinhäuser sold stock — a move the company said was tied to settling taxes and levies under its internal employee participation program, MOVE SAP. Such transactions are traditionally read by the market as a gauge of internal confidence in the group's long-term trajectory.
Services Tiers and a Patch Day
SAP's efforts to embed analytics beyond traditional industries were on display in the Team Liquid case. To help enterprise customers migrate and run modern system landscapes, the group had laid out details of its revised service offering on September 10. The services and support portfolio spans three tiered plans — "Foundational," "Advanced" and "Max" — flanked by development, application management and professional services. The tiering is designed to give companies tailored support levels for data and workflow migration, with predictable assistance for implementation and system operations.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying SAP?
Security upkeep stayed in view as well. On September 8, SAP's monthly Security Patch Day delivered 19 new security notes plus an update. Four of the fixed vulnerabilities were rated critical, including CVE-2026-44756 in Extended Passport Processing with a maximum CVSS score of 10.0, and CVE-2026-58240 in the SAP NetWeaver Message Server at 9.8.
Analysts See Progress, but Not Enough
From the market's perspective, the pace of SAP's software and cloud strategy remains the central question. On September 8, UBS analyst Michael Briest reaffirmed a "Neutral" rating with a EUR 201 price target. Briest pointed to modest headway in integrating AI assistants into the product lineup, while flagging that more work lies ahead.
Acquisitions Dent the Profit Outlook
SAP's strategic focus stays firmly on linking cloud applications with artificial intelligence. After closing the acquisition of Prior Labs more than a month ago, the board made a slight adjustment to its full-year guidance. Integrating the tabular AI model specialist, along with the purchase of data platform Dremio, produced a dilution effect of more than EUR 100 million. For full-year 2026, SAP now projects a non-IFRS operating profit of EUR 11.8 billion to EUR 12.2 billion. Cloud growth is still expected to hold at a high level, with revenue of EUR 25.8 billion to EUR 26.2 billion.
The stock closed Friday at EUR 183.00, a daily loss of 1.9%, though it still trades 9.2% above its 200-day moving average. Fresh direction for the share price is expected from the next interim report: SAP will publish detailed third-quarter figures on October 21, 2026.
Ad
SAP Stock: New Analysis - 19 September
Fresh SAP information released. What's the impact for investors? Our latest independent report examines recent figures and market trends.
