SAP Ties Up Labor Deal, Hands Erlach Eastern Europe, and Keeps Buying Back Stock

SAP guarantees jobs through 2028, names a new CEE chief, deepens Nvidia and NetApp AI ties and nears 8.95 million shares bought back ahead of October 21 results.

SAP has spent the past several weeks locking down the pieces it needs before the next earnings reveal: a workforce pact at home, a fresh regional chief abroad, deeper AI alliances, and a steady drumbeat of share repurchases. The stock closed Monday at EUR 185.50, a gain of 0.4% on the day and above its 50-day moving average of EUR 180.65, though it remains down 11% since the start of the year.

Job Security Through 2028

According to Handelsblatt on October 1, SAP reached an agreement with the works council of its parent company guaranteeing employment through the end of 2028. Under the arrangement, employees affected by upcoming reorganizations will be offered alternative positions within the group. Retraining for new roles is part of the package, and pay levels will be preserved when staff are reassigned. A comparable deal for the German sales unit was still being negotiated at that point.

Erlach Takes the Helm in Central and Eastern Europe

On the leadership side, Hermann Erlach assumed responsibility for Central and Eastern Europe on Thursday and now runs the business across that region, covering 24 countries. The reshuffle is intended to strengthen customer relationships in Eastern European markets and to coordinate activities across the individual country subsidiaries.

Nvidia, NetApp, and the AI Cost Question

Technology partnerships are moving in parallel. SAP and Nvidia agreed to deepen their cooperation on governing and safeguarding AI agents, with plans to connect the SAP Business AI Platform to Nvidia OpenShell. SAP developers are contributing directly to the OpenShell codebase. Separately, NetApp said on September 29 that it intends to expand its SAP partnership, evaluating a deeper cloud-native integration of its own functions into SAP Cloud Infrastructure along with technical validation of NetApp Object Storage.

SAP also published detailed guidance on how companies can monitor and reduce spending on so-called AI tokens. The material lays out specific cost-control approaches but contains no quantified order and no change to revenue guidance.

Bern Transit and Oman Talent Program

Operationally, Bern's municipal transport authority is modernizing with SAP, drawing on cloud solutions, new planning processes, digital HR tools, and an architecture built for future AI applications. On September 29, SAP also struck a cooperation with Petroleum Development Oman, linking the partner's Digital Innovation Program with SAP's own Young Professionals Program to build digital skills and career paths for young talent in Oman.

Buyback Total Nears 8.95 Million Shares

The company continues to repurchase stock on the open market. SAP reported yesterday that it bought 50,000 of its own shares via the Xetra trading system between September 28 and October 2 inclusive, bringing the cumulative total under the current program to 8,945,886 shares. The purchases have been running regularly over recent weeks, supporting the capital structure while internal restructuring proceeds in an orderly fashion.

Jefferies Lifts Target Ahead of October 21 Report

Analysts have taken a constructive view of the operational outlook. On September 22, Jefferies raised its price target on SAP from EUR 210 to EUR 220 and reiterated its buy rating, citing expectations of robust order intake and a quieter third quarter. The full picture arrives with the upcoming financial report: SAP has scheduled publication of its third-quarter 2026 results for October 21 at 22:05, with an investor conference call the same evening at 23:00.