SAP’s Cloud Backlog Breaches €21.9 Billion as Shares Snap a Brutal Slide

SAP's Q1 2026 earnings per share of €1.66 beat estimates, cloud backlog hits €21.9B, and shares jump 6% despite full-year guidance unchanged.

A software giant that had shed more than a quarter of its value since January just delivered the kind of quarter that forces a rethink. SAP’s first-quarter numbers for 2026 landed well ahead of expectations, sending shares surging more than 6 percent in XETRA trading to close at €148.74 on Friday. The move marks a sharp reversal for a stock that has been under relentless pressure, still sitting roughly 45 percent below its 52-week peak of €271.60.

The headline that caught the market’s attention was earnings per share of €1.66, edging past the consensus estimate of €1.64. While the beat was narrow, it carried symbolic weight for a company that had been written off by some as a victim of the broader tech rout. Total revenue rose 6 percent to €9.56 billion, with the non-IFRS operating profit climbing 17 percent — or 24 percent on a currency-adjusted basis.

Cloud Orders Hit a New High

The real engine behind the turnaround was the cloud business. SAP’s current cloud backlog swelled 20 percent to €21.9 billion, and by 25 percent when stripping out currency effects. Cloud revenue reached €5.96 billion, a 27 percent jump in local currencies, while the cloud ERP suite posted even stronger growth of 30 percent.

Chief Executive Christian Klein pointed to the cloud order book and the accelerating momentum in enterprise artificial intelligence as the twin drivers of the quarter. Chief Financial Officer Dominik Asam stressed that the company is executing its strategy with discipline, signaling that management has no intention of loosening its grip on profitability despite the challenging macroeconomic backdrop.

Full-Year Targets Stay Put

SAP left its 2026 guidance unchanged. The company continues to expect currency-adjusted cloud revenue in a range of €25.8 billion to €26.2 billion, representing growth of 23 to 25 percent year over year. The non-IFRS operating profit is forecast to expand by 14 to 18 percent.

Analysts breathed a collective sigh of relief. Johannes Schaller of Deutsche Bank Research described the start to the year as better than feared, maintaining a “Buy” rating with a price target of €200 — a level that implies roughly 35 percent upside from Friday’s close.

Dividends, Buybacks, and a Florida Showcase

Shareholders have two key dates on the calendar. On May 5, the annual general meeting will vote on a dividend of €2.50 per share. If approved, the payout will follow three days later. Separately, SAP completed another tranche of its ongoing share buyback program in April, returning additional capital to investors.

The next major catalyst arrives on May 11, when SAP kicks off its Sapphire conference in Florida. The event is expected to feature detailed updates on the company’s artificial intelligence strategy — a topic that has become central to the investment case. With the quarterly numbers now in the rearview mirror, the market will be looking for concrete evidence that SAP can translate its AI ambitions into measurable revenue growth.