Autodesk, Twilio, Salesforce, Workday, Atlassian Trending With Analysts

Analysts are intrested in these 5 stocks: ( (ADSK) ), ( (TWLO) ), ( (CRM) ), ( (WDAY) ) and ( (TEAM) ). Here is a breakdown of their recent ratings and the rationale behind them.

Autodesk is back in the spotlight as analyst Nick Altmann initiates coverage with a Buy rating and a $365 price target, arguing that the company is set up for “disciplined and durable” growth. Autodesk remains a clear leader in computer‑aided design (CAD) and building information modeling (BIM), two critical categories for designing, making, and operating physical assets, from buildings to manufactured products. The analyst highlights that these businesses are highly sticky and supported by large, growing markets, helping Autodesk scale to more than $7 billion in expected revenue by fiscal 2026. The company is now pushing harder into integrated platforms like Forma, Fusion, and Flow, layering in artificial intelligence and unifying workflows to capture more value across the full design‑to‑operation lifecycle. While customers still see some challenges around data silos and product connectivity, surveys cited in the report suggest those issues are gradually improving, and Autodesk’s strategy is directly targeting these weak spots.

The report underscores that Autodesk’s expansion isn’t just about defending its core; it’s about finding new growth vectors in areas such as construction and infrastructure, and monetizing AI and APIs as additional revenue drivers. The analyst notes that Autodesk’s total addressable market in architecture, engineering, construction, and operations (AECO), as well as manufacturing, could reach roughly $51–58 billion by 2029, giving the company a long runway. Customer checks across both design and make segments skewed positive, reinforcing Autodesk’s status as an industry standard for many professional users. Construction Cloud feedback was more mixed, reflecting both competition and the complexity of the construction tech stack, but the analyst still sees room for Autodesk to improve and solidify its position. Overall, the company’s strong core, expanding product ecosystem, and push into AI‑powered workflows form the backbone of the Buy recommendation.

From a financial perspective, Autodesk’s story has been noisy in recent years, partly because of changes in its transaction model and billing structure, which muddied the picture on growth. Adjusting for these shifts, the analyst argues that underlying revenue and billings are healthier than headlines might suggest, with growth expected to exit fiscal 2026 at 11% and 17% in constant currency, respectively. More importantly for investors, margins are moving in the right direction: operating margins are projected to expand by 340 basis points in fiscal 2026 on an adjusted basis. This trajectory supports management’s longer‑term targets of 41% reported and 45% adjusted operating margins by fiscal 2029, which, if delivered, would place Autodesk among the more profitable large software firms. The combination of steady growth and rising profitability underpins the view that investors can now underwrite the medium‑term story with greater confidence.

Valuation is another key piece of the bullish case. The $365 price target is based on roughly 28 times estimated calendar 2027 free cash flow, a premium to peer software names. The analyst argues this premium is justified given Autodesk’s leading industry position and “Rule of 40” profile that sits about six points above comparable companies, indicating an attractive blend of growth and profitability. For investors, this suggests that while the stock isn’t cheap on traditional metrics, the market may still not be fully pricing in the durability of Autodesk’s business model and its emerging AI‑driven opportunities. With average three‑month daily trading volume at around 1.4 million shares, liquidity is solid, making it easier for both institutional and retail investors to build or adjust positions.

Overall, the recommendation frames Autodesk as a software leader emerging from a period of transition with a clearer, more compelling growth story. The company’s focus on integrating its product suite, reducing friction between tools, and embedding AI aligns well with how customers increasingly want to work—seamlessly across design, engineering, and operations. While investors should watch for progress on product connectivity and adoption of newer platforms like Construction Cloud, the tone of the coverage is that these are manageable execution items, not structural weaknesses. For investors looking for a large‑cap software name with strong competitive moats, solid margin expansion, and multiple new growth levers, Autodesk earns a place on the Buy list.

Twilio, long seen as a battleground stock, is getting a fresh vote of confidence as analyst Nick Altmann upgrades the shares to Buy with a $165 price target and takes over coverage. The report argues that Twilio has quietly transformed itself over the past several years, delivering growth reacceleration and meaningful margin improvement while tightening capital discipline and returning cash to shareholders. The company sits at the heart of the communications platform as a service (CPaaS) market—an industry expected to be worth around $16 billion in 2025—and is poised to benefit from a resurgence in voice communications and a new generation of applications embedding messaging, voice, and other channels into AI‑driven customer experiences. Twilio’s stock has already outperformed software peers year‑to‑date, but the analyst believes “its best days are yet to come,” with both near‑ and medium‑term upside.

A core part of the bull case is Twilio’s position as a “two‑way” player in the generative AI era. While investors argue over which application‑layer companies will win—from traditional SaaS providers to AI start‑ups—Twilio provides the underlying communications infrastructure that all these applications rely on. With more than 10 million developers in its ecosystem, Twilio is well placed whether customers build their own AI agents or buy them from software vendors. The report stresses that Twilio can monetize AI‑powered communications in both business‑to‑business and consumer markets, reducing the risk that a slowdown in one segment derails the story. Importantly, the analyst sees minimal disruption risk from AI itself; instead, AI is expected to drive more usage of Twilio’s channels, especially higher‑margin voice, and create room for market share gains as Twilio consolidates a fragmented CPaaS space.

On the fundamentals, Twilio is described as the industry leader with roughly 30% share in CPaaS, operating in a market that is set to accelerate again, particularly into 2026 as AI‑driven use cases scale. The analyst models more conservative top‑line growth of 8% in both fiscal 2026 and 2027 but argues that the combination of improving growth and rising margins is exactly what software investors tend to reward. Twilio has moved to GAAP profitability and plans to return, on average, 50% of annual free cash flow to shareholders through 2025–2027, signaling management’s commitment to capital returns alongside growth. This focus on free cash flow and shareholder‑friendly policies is presented as a key differentiator versus many high‑growth peers that still prioritize expansion at any cost.

Valuation is framed as attractive relative to Twilio’s improving fundamentals. The $165 target price is based on about 22 times fiscal 2027 estimated free cash flow—only a modest premium to the peer group average of 19 times, despite Twilio’s stronger strategic positioning in AI‑enabled communications. The analyst argues that as more investors appreciate Twilio’s role as the connective tissue in the agentic and GenAI landscape, the market may be willing to award a higher multiple. With average three‑month daily trading volume at about 2.4 million shares, the stock is liquid enough to accommodate institutional interest. For investors seeking exposure to AI‑driven growth without betting on any single application winner, Twilio is portrayed as a compelling, relatively defensive way to play the theme.

Salesforce, one of the original pioneers of cloud software, is being re‑introduced to investors as a potential comeback story. Analyst Allan Verkhovski initiates coverage with a Buy rating and a $335 price target, arguing that the market is underestimating Salesforce’s ability to reinvent itself for the AI era. While many legacy software players struggle to adapt to technological shifts, the report contends that Salesforce is aggressively re‑architecting its platform around AI, data, and automation. Key initiatives include the Data 360 offering, designed to create a “golden record” of each customer, and Agentforce, an AI‑driven layer aimed at embedding smart agents across sales, service, and other workflows. Investor skepticism about execution has weighed on the stock, leaving Salesforce trading at only about 14 times estimated 2027 free cash flow, versus peers at around 17 times—a discount the analyst sees as an opportunity rather than a warning sign.

The coverage emphasizes that Salesforce’s internal and customer‑facing signals look better than the market gives credit for. Management is increasingly confident that new net annualized order value (NNAOV) is accelerating and will continue to outpace average order value, which the analyst translates into expectations for organic double‑digit subscription revenue growth into fiscal 2027. Customer and partner feedback, gathered in dozens of quotes, is largely positive: most partners see potential reacceleration driven by Agentforce, and more than half of 53 customers plan to increase spending on Salesforce over the next year. Around a quarter of those customers already use Agentforce or are in the middle of implementation, and among those not yet on the platform, 78% are interested in adopting it, with over half targeting deployment within twelve months. Use cases cluster around sales, customer service, robotic process automation, and field services—areas central to Salesforce’s long‑term growth.

The report also highlights the early traction of Agentforce as a meaningful proof point. Just over a year since launch, Agentforce has reached more than $540 million in annual recurring revenue, growing 330% year‑over‑year, though much of this is still driven by pilots with relatively low average revenue per customer. Production usage, however, is growing rapidly—up 70% quarter‑over‑quarter—and the company’s flexible pricing, including Agentic Enterprise License Agreements, is designed to multiply customer spend as adoption deepens. The analyst argues that if Salesforce can successfully prove out the return on investment of these AI agents, it could significantly expand its wallet share within existing customers and open doors in new segments. This potential, combined with a still‑discounted valuation multiple, anchors the Buy rating.

On valuation, the $335 price target rests on an 18‑times multiple of calendar 2027 free cash flow, roughly in line with peers that are expected to grow revenue between 7% and 16% in 2026. That suggests the analyst sees room for the stock to rerate modestly as investors gain comfort that Salesforce is not being left behind in AI, and that growth can stabilize at attractive double‑digit levels. With robust liquidity—average three‑month daily volume of about 8.6 million shares—the name remains a staple for large asset managers, but the report argues that individual investors may find a favorable risk‑reward as well. In the narrative presented, Salesforce is not a fading incumbent but a platform fighting successfully for its “second act” in AI, offering a blend of reasonable valuation, improving fundamentals, and significant upside if Agentforce and Data 360 deliver on their promise.

Workday, a heavyweight in human capital and financial management software, is also entering the AI conversation with renewed vigor. Analyst Allan Verkhovski assumes coverage with a Buy rating and a $285 price target, positioning the stock as a classic “growth at a reasonable price” (GARP) opportunity. Despite Workday growing annual subscription revenue by roughly 16% and free cash flow by about 18% over the past two years, the shares have effectively gone nowhere, weighed down by investor concerns over slowing growth and uncertainty around its AI strategy. Growth expectations have been ratcheted down several times—from 17–19% projected subscription growth through fiscal 2027 to around 13% more recently—yet the analyst argues that current forecasts are now de‑risked. In the latest quarter, AI‑related products and extensions such as Evisort and Extend Pro delivered strong results, with Extend Pro’s net new annual contract value up more than 50% year‑on‑year and AI offerings adding over 1.5 percentage points to ARR growth.

Workday used its recent Financial Analyst Day to spell out a clearer AI roadmap and flex more than $150 million in emerging “agentic” AI annual recurring revenue, growing above 200%. The planned rollout of Flex Credits early next year is expected to further catalyze AI adoption by making it easier for customers to try and scale new AI agents and features. Feedback from customers at the company’s Rising conference is encouraging: 12 out of 15 surveyed customers expressed interest in adopting Workday’s AI solutions and agents. Beyond AI, Workday continues to execute on its broader growth strategy, with notable strength in mid‑market expansion through Workday GO, M&A contributions from Paradox and Sana, partner‑sourced deals accounting for more than 20% of net new ACV, growing full‑suite adoption, and faster growth internationally than in the domestic market. While there is some weakness in U.S. federal and state/local government sectors, the broader demand picture remains solid.

The analyst also takes a close look at Workday’s forward‑looking subscription revenue and argues that fiscal 2027 numbers look conservative. Historically, Workday’s remaining performance obligations (cRPO) coverage going into a new fiscal year has not increased more than about two percentage points versus the prior year. Using that pattern and assuming just modest upside to fourth‑quarter cRPO growth, the analyst suggests that current guidance effectively bakes in a decline in new subscription revenue added outside the backlog—a scenario viewed as unlikely. As a result, the projected 13% subscription revenue growth in fiscal 2027 appears “de‑risked,” with the analyst modeling about 11% plus in fiscal 2028 and room to raise forecasts as the year progresses. For investors, this signals that expectations may now be set low enough for Workday to start surprising to the upside again.

Where Workday really shines, according to the report, is on profitability and capital returns. The company is targeting a six‑percentage‑point increase in non‑GAAP operating margins to 35% by fiscal 2028, which implies about 21% GAAP operating margins and a clear path toward roughly 25% as stock‑based compensation as a percentage of revenue declines to 13–14%. Workday is also putting meaningful cash behind its confidence: it repurchased 3.4 million shares in the latest quarter at an average price of $238, spending $803 million and still leaving $4.4 billion in remaining buyback authorization—enough to reduce the share count by around 3% next year. The $285 price target is based on 19 times calendar 2027 EV/free cash flow, in line with peers growing revenue between 8% and 16%. In the analyst’s view, minimal AI disruption risk, steady double‑digit growth, and inflecting margins make Workday an appealing long‑term compounder for investors willing to look beyond near‑term macro noise.

Atlassian rounds out the group as something of a contrarian favorite. Analyst Allan Verkhovski upgrades the stock to Buy with a $220 price target and labels it a “must‑have in the collection,” even naming it their top pick for 2026. Despite being the creator of Jira—now an industry standard for project tracking—and owning a broad collaboration suite including Confluence, Jira Service Management, and Loom, Atlassian shares are down about a third year‑to‑date. The sell‑off has left the stock trading near historic valuation lows at roughly six times forward EV/sales and 21 times EV/free cash flow, levels the analyst considers overly pessimistic given the company’s growth profile and strategic position in AI. Atlassian is entering its AI chapter with momentum: monthly active users of its AI features jumped 50% quarter‑over‑quarter to 3.5 million in the third quarter, and customers using AI code generation tools expanded their paid Jira seats at a 5% higher rate than those not using AI.

The report emphasizes that Atlassian’s role in the software ecosystem is more powerful than simply providing data for third‑party AI tools. The company effectively controls the “system of work” for many teams, defining how they collaborate, track tasks, and access information. Rovo, its AI‑powered assistant, sits on top of this system, helping users find information, automate routine work, and collaborate more efficiently. This deep integration, combined with early field evidence of higher expansion among AI users, reinforces the analyst’s conviction that Atlassian has significant long‑term pricing power. AI‑driven M&A, such as the acquisition of The Browser Company, is seen as another lever to enrich the platform and increase stickiness. Meanwhile, the core business remains solid: organic cloud revenue growth is estimated in the high teens, and cloud net expansion remains around 120%, supported by seat growth, price increases, ongoing migrations from on‑premise Data Center deployments, and tier upgrades toward premium and enterprise editions.

Atlassian’s strategy revolves around three main priorities: expanding within the enterprise, pushing its new “Collections” bundles, and driving the final migrations from Data Center to cloud. Of the $18 billion expansion opportunity within its 300,000‑plus customers, about $14 billion is tied to enterprise accounts. While 85% of the Fortune 500 already use Atlassian products, they represent only around 10% of total business, with average revenue per customer of about $1.3 million—leaving ample room for deeper adoption. The company is evolving from stand‑alone tools to a more unified system where apps and AI agents are grouped into purchasable Collections, encouraging wider, “wall‑to‑wall” deployments. Data Center end‑of‑life, expected in roughly three years, is a further catalyst: many of these large customers have historically paid very low per‑user fees, and moving them to cloud, with an estimated 1.4x revenue uplift, could unlock substantial upside, though the biggest migration wave is not expected until fiscal 2029.

The $220 price target is based on 7.5 times calendar 2027 EV/sales and 25 times EV/free cash flow, multiples that align with Rule‑of‑40 peers growing revenue between 17% and 27%. With average three‑month daily volume near 2.8 million shares, the stock is accessible for investors of all sizes. The analyst’s bottom line is that the market is mispricing Atlassian’s combination of strong cloud growth, rising AI usage, and a powerful strategic position as the backbone of how teams work. For investors looking for a beaten‑down growth name with clear catalysts—AI adoption, enterprise expansion, and Data Center migrations—Atlassian is presented as an unusually attractive risk‑reward going into the second half of the decade.