Workday (WDAY, $108.13) last night reported fiscal Q2 (July) EPS of 24 cents, nine cents above the consensus estimate, on revenue of $525.3 million (+40% y/y), vs. the consensus of $506.9 million. The guidance range was $505 million to $508 million.

Subscription revenue rose 42% to $434.5 million, above the guidance range of $420 million to $423 million.

For FQ3, Workday sees revenue of $538 million to $540 million, above the consensus of $521.9 million.

Canaccord raises its WDAY price target to $125 from $115, saying the FQ2 report confirms its checks that the company continues to execute well. 

Workday is a core cloud-software holding in the Tech-Stock Prospector Vulture Portfolio, added in April 2014, when the stock was trading at $74.25.

Boasting an RSI of 65.5, ServiceNow (NOW, $114.35) shares are rebounding from the August 10 pivot low of $103. 

The stock is approaching the all-time high of $115.85 set on July 27, the day after the Q2 earnings report.

Baird reiterates its Amazon (AMZN, $945) price target of $1,100, but adjusts its estimates to reflect a lower gross margin for the Whole Foods segment and a reduced overall operating margin.

The firm does not expect any other large acquisitions from Amazon over the near-term. Baird does see the company continuing to make small-scale purchases in AI, AR/VR and cloud.

BofA/Merrill upgrades VMware (VMW, $104.73) to ‘Buy’ and raises its price target to $120 from $108, citing upside potential for the new VMW Cloud on AWS. 

The firm is confident that double-digit revenue growth can be sustained into next year and potentially longer thanks to the positive transition of VMware’s business model. 

VMware shares this morning hit a new 52-week high at $104.90.

For more on VMware, see TechStock Radar—August 24, 2017.

With Marvell Technology (MRVL, $17.14) shares now back above the 50-day moving average of $16.22, traders are eyeing resistance from late June at $17.89. The 52-week high of $18.18 was reached on June 20.

The 200-day moving average is trending upward from $15.46.

UBS thinks solid fiscal Q2 (July) results from Splunk (SPLK, $66.37) show execution at the company is back on track. The firm lifts its price target to $74 from $72.

UBS remains upbeat on the longer-term opportunities at Splunk, citing a large TAM and limited competitive threats.

Shares of Splunk (SPLK, $66.77) this morning are up more than 10% following the release of better than expected fiscal Q2 (July) results, with revenue advancing 32% to $280 million, well above the consensus estimate of $268.5 million.  EPS of eight cents topped the consensus by two cents.

Susquehanna upgrades Splunk to ‘Positive’ and raises its price target to $76 from $68, calling out an “impressive” re-acceleration in license revenue growth and the improved performance in the EMEA region in the latest quarter.

The firm has more confidence now that Splunk’s FQ1 deceleration was execution related and not indicative of a more permanent slowdown.

RBC Capital raises its VMware (VMW, $101) price target to $125 from $113, saying positive momentum in the business is undermining the argument that the company could be killed off by the public cloud. 

The firm believes the upcoming VMware Cloud for AWS will be a key growth driver going forward.

For more on VMware, see TechStock Radar—August 22, 2017.

Shares of Paycom (PAYC, $74.41) this morning hit a new all-time high at $74.82. So far this year, the stock has risen 63%.

For more on Paycom, see TechStock Radar—August 3, 2017.

Piper Jaffray raises its Salesforce (CRM, $94.15) price target to $115 from $110 based on substantial FQ2 (July) beats for billings and operating cash flow. The firm says Salesforce’s key metrics are accelerating across the board.

Credit Suisse also takes its target up to $115 from $110.

BTIG Research remains bullish on Salesforce (CRM, $92.41) ahead of the release of fiscal Q2 (July) results after the close. 

The firm maintains its price target of $100, saying its checks with Salesforce partners indicate the pipeline is strong and pricing is stable. 

Salesforce is benefiting from more multi-cloud deployments and deeper penetration of the installed base, says BTIG. 

Deutsche Bank upgrades VMware (VMW, $98.94) to ‘Buy’ and lifts its price target to $120 from $110, saying competitive threats from cloud adoption and AWS have eased, as large enterprises are embracing more of a hybrid model. Workloads are being migrated to the public cloud at a slower than expected pace, according to the firm.

VMware shares this morning traded to a new 52-week high of $99.18.

Piper Jaffray thinks all videogame purchases will be digital in about six years, or maybe even sooner if a critical mass is reached.

The firm sees Electronic Arts (EA, $116.47) benefiting from continued margin expansion as the industry approaches 100% digital.

For the trailing 12-months ended June, EA’s digital net sales represented 63% of total net sales.

SunTrust expects this week’s fiscal Q2 (July) results from Salesforce (CRM, $91) to beat expectations based on well-balanced growth across all key segments of the business. 

The firm is bullish on the second half of the year as well, citing seasonal billings strength, a number of event-driven catalysts (including the Dreamforce conference) and the increased monetization of the newer cloud products.

SunTrust maintains its Salesforce price target of $110.

Electronic Arts (EA, $117.67) is one tech name that has held up relatively well during this week’s market turbulence. 

The stock sports an RSI of 57.6 and remains above its 50-day moving average of $112.52.

The all-time high of $120.25 was reached on July 27. EA stock ended last year at $78.76.

Aegis is keeping its ‘Hold’ rating on Snap (SNAP, $13.65), but raises its price target to $15 from $14, saying it’s incrementally more positive on the company’s long-term outlook following a call with management. 

However, the firm says there are still plenty of near-term hurdles that Snap needs to overcome before it could get more constructive on the stock. 

Snap must work to attract more advertisers, improve measurement & analytics, solve user growth issues on Android and respond to competitive challenges from Instagram.

BTIG Research sees the recent pullback in Check Point Software (CHKP, $108.09) shares as a buying opportunity. The stock has retreated from the 52-week high of $116.63 set in the middle of July.

The firm maintains its price target of $118, saying it believes Check Point remains well positioned to benefit from organizations continuing to consolidate their security spend.

Nutanix (NTNX, $22.83) shares this morning are up 5% after Jefferies starts coverage at ‘Buy’ with a price target of $30 based on valuation. 

The firm believes the market is not fully appreciating Nutanix’s recurring software content.

For more on Nutanix, see TechStock Radar—July 14, 2017. 

Tech-Stock Prospector subscribers should see the July 2017 issue (TSP #185).

T. Rowe Price in Q2 became a top 10 holder of Palo Alto Networks (PANW, $131.33) after purchasing 1.25 million shares. The money manager now owns 2.03 million shares.

T. Rowe Price was the #2 Palo Alto buyer in the quarter, behind American Century’s purchase of 1.46 million shares.

Cantor upgrades Snap (SNAP, $13.05) to ‘Overweight’ with a price target of $15 based on a more attractive risk/reward profile following the sharp pullback since the Q2 earnings report. 

With improved ad technology and increased engagement, the firm thinks there could be “significant upside” to Snap’s average revenue per user in 2018 and beyond.

Canaccord boosts its NVIDIA (NVDA, $162.08) price target to $190 from $180, saying the company continues to execute well across several secular growth markets. 

The firm sees NVIDIA capitalizing on new trends in deep learning, virtual/augmented reality and autonomous driving.

Fidelity has been building up its Twilio (TWLO, $31.67) position, adding 1.52 million shares in Q2. The mutual fund giant now owns 9.25 million shares.

In Q4 2016, Fidelity bought 3.77 million shares. It then added 2.67 million shares in Q1.

Credit Suisse lowers its Ultimate Software (ULTI, $195.51) price target to $245 from $260, citing the company’s worst miss and guide down in almost 10 years. 

With the Q2 shortfall and weak Q3 guidance attributed to delayed implementations at larger new customers, the firm believes the problem is fixable, saying it views the recent weakness in the stock as a “very good” buying opportunity for long-term investors.

For more on Ultimate, see TechStock Radar—August 2, 2017.

Stifel argues that the ad-buying mix shifting significantly to the recently launched API/self-serve platform was the primary reason behind the Q2 revenue miss at Snap (SNAP, $12.18). 

The change pressured the company’s ad prices, but the move will broaden advertiser demand over time, says the firm.

Stifel reduces its Snap price target to $18 from $22, but maintains its ‘Buy’ rating.

Jefferies keeps its ‘Buy’ rating on Snap (SNAP, $12.33), but lowers its price target to $16 from $30. The firm believes the long-term positive thesis remains intact based on expanding engagement. Jefferies thinks patient investors should look through the near-term noise.

In Q2, Snap added 7.3 million DAUs, bringing the total to 173 million, below the consensus estimate of 176 million. While Q2 global ARPU of $1.05 was up from 90 cents in Q1, it missed the consensus of $1.07.

Snap shares this morning are down more than 10%. Earlier, the stock traded to a new post-IPO low of $11.81.

With Snap (SNAP, $13.35) set to report Q2 results after the close, JP Morgan is already looking ahead to Q3, and thinks expectations are too high.

The Q3 consensus revenue estimate is $272.1 million, with the Street-low estimate at $213 million.

For Q2, the consensus revenue estimate of $186.2 million is below the JP Morgan estimate of $188 million. The firm looks for Q2 DAU net adds of 8 million.

The Russell 2000—now at 1,389—is trading at its lowest level in two months. The RSI is down to 35.5. 

The small-cap index has dipped below its 50-day moving average of 1,417, but still remains above its 200-day moving average, which is trending upward from 1,369.

Piper Jaffray raises its Netflix (NFLX, $173) price target to $215 from $198 based on increased international subscriber estimates. 

The firm expects Netflix by 2020 will reach 64 million domestic subs, representing 50% U.S. household penetration. 

On the international front, Piper Jaffray thinks Netflix during the same timeframe can reach 100 million subs, with “zero or very minimal penetration” in lower-income markets.

A Bloomberg report out this morning saying RingCentral (RNG, $39.56) is working with an adviser after receiving takeover interest sent the stock to a new all-time high of $43.05. The shares are currently up 10%.

RingCentral is an emerging player in cloud-based business communications. The company’s flagship Office product replaces on-prem phone systems from Cisco, Avaya and ShoreTel.

We profiled RingCentral in the October 2015 issue of Tech-Stock Prospector (TSP #164), when the shares were trading around $18.50.

MKM Partners raises its Amazon (AMZN, $989) price target to $1,275 from $1,095 based on an increased revenue outlook. Until investors can see a limit on overall growth opportunities, revenue growth and market-share gains will matter more than profitability, says the firm.

Mizuho reinstates Amazon at ‘Buy’ with a price target of $1,250, saying it sees the next pillar of growth likely to come from advertising through voice search, which would allow brands to sell directly to consumers. The firm believes Amazon has many levers to harness its monetization potential.

Shares of Ultimate Software (ULTI, $192.19) remain under pressure after last week’s Q2 earnings report. 

The RSI is now in oversold territory at 27.5. The 50-day moving average has turned downward from $215.93. 

There is support at the March low of $187.17 and the February low of $185.

For more on Ultimate, see TechStock Radar—August 2, 2017.

Morgan Stanley lifts its NXP Semiconductors (NXPI, $112.77) price target to $117.50 from $110, saying shareholders have the upper hand in seeking to push for a higher takeover price from Qualcomm (QCOM). 

The firm believes a higher bid would be inconsequential to Qualcomm’s balance sheet and deal accretion.

On Friday. activist investor Elliott disclosed a 6% stake in NXP Semi, saying it believes the shares are undervalued.

Yelp (YELP, $39.99) shares this morning are surging 27% after the company last night reported Q2 EPS of 25 cents (four cents above the consensus estimate) on revenue of $209.9 million (+21% y/y), vs. the consensus of $204.9 million.

For 2017, Yelp raised the low end of its revenue guidance range to $855 million from $850 million, keeping the high end at $865 million. The consensus was $855.7 million.

Yelp also announced a $200-million shares repurchase authorization.

Following yesterday 9% gain, shares of Tableau Software (DATA, $70.33) this morning hit a new 52-week high at $70.99. The RSI is up to 71.4.

The stock is now well into the large gap on the price chart from back in early 2016 that extends up to $77.73.

Stifel raises its Paycom Software (PAYC, $69.20) price target to $80 from $67 and OpCo goes to $75 from $65 following this week’s Q2 earnings report, which beat on both the top and bottom lines.

EPS of 26 cents topped the consensus estimate by six cents on revenue of $98.2 million (+33% y/y), above the consensus of $95.7 million.

For Q3, the company sees revenue of $99 million to $101 million, vs. the consensus of $99.7 million.

KeyBanc says the solid Q2 results validate Paycom’s differentiated approach in cloud payroll and HR software aimed at small and midsize businesses. Stifel calls out Paycom’s limited penetration of a large market opportunity.

UBS raises its Tableau Software (DATA, $68.84) price target to $74 from $68, saying Q2 results beat on most measures even though strong subscription adoption remains a license revenue growth headwind.

Total revenue in Q2 rose 7% to $212.9 million, topping the consensus estimate of $211.3 million. The guidance range was $205 million to $215 million.

UBS continues to like the long-term value creation potential of the shift toward subscriptions and is encouraged by the company’s ability to manage through downward revenue pressure in the near-term.

Blaming deal timing issues, Ultimate Software (ULTI, $200.98) last night missed Q2 revenue expectations and offered downside guidance. The stock this morning is off more than 11%.

The provider of cloud-based HCM solutions says enterprise time-to-live has expanded by two to three months, with mid-market deals seeing one to two month extensions. 

Canaccord Genuity lowers its Ultimate price target to $225 from $240, but remains positive over the long term because it has seen this exact same issue before. Back in 2008, when Ultimate first started to move up-market, time-to-live extended as implementation requirements became more complex, says the firm. Canaccord recalls management adjusted the model and ultimately got the business back on track.

Apple (AAPL, $158.44) shares this morning traded to a new all-time high of $159.75, powered by last night’s strong fiscal Q3 (June) results and bullish FQ4 guidance.

Revenue in the latest quarter of $45.4 billion beat the consensus estimate of $44.8 billion. Unit sales of the iPhone held up well ahead of the upcoming new product launch, while the iPad business did much better than expected. 

For FQ4, the company sees revenue of $49 billion to $52 billion, vs. the consensus of $49.2 billion.

Apple is a long-term holding in the Tech-Stock Prospector Vulture Portfolio, added in May 2013, when the stock was trading around $61.70.

Shopify (SHOP, $99.21) shares this morning are up more than 7% after the company reports yet another stellar quarter. Earlier in the session, the stock hit a new all-time high of $105.79.

In Q2, revenue rose 75% to $151.7 million, topping the consensus estimate of $143.6 million. 

Another record number of merchants joined the platform in the latest quarter. Shopify now powers more than 500,000 businesses in 175 countries.

Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) of $23.7 million was up 64%, acceleration from 62% growth in Q1. That powered Q2 Subscription Solutions revenue growth to accelerate to 64% from 60% in Q1.

GMV rose 74% to $5.8 billion. GMV processed through Shopify Payments totaled $2.2 billion, representing 38% of total GMV.

For Q3, Shopify expects revenue of $164 million to $166 million, vs. the consensus of $156.5 million.

For 2017, the revised revenue guidance range is $642 million to $648 million, up from $615 million to $630 million previously. The consensus is $628.4 million.

In the April 2017 issue of Tech-Stock Prospector (TSP #182), we noted that investors were finally coming around to the massive growth story at Shopify. At the time, the stock was trading around $68.75.

Amazon (AMZN, $1,005) shares this morning are rallying back above the 50-day moving average of $997. 

Yesterday, the stock dipped to a low of $987.02, down from the all-time high of $1,083.31 reached last week.

The uptrend from the November 2016 low of $710.10 remains in place.