Lazard Asset Management LLC Decreases Position in Workday, Inc. $WDAY

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its position in Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:WDAY) by 48.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,882 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 52,975 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Workday were worth $7,260,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Workday during the second quarter worth $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Workday in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Workday in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Workday during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Workday during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Workday

Here are the key news stories impacting Workday this week:

• Positive Sentiment: EarnIn partnership expands Workday’s payroll ecosystem. EarnIn will integrate its earnings-management tools into Workday’s Enhanced Direct Deposit Switching platform beginning October 1, 2026. The offering could improve payroll enrollment and data integrity while adding financial-wellness features for employees at Workday’s more than 11,500 customer organizations. This may strengthen Workday’s enterprise HR and payroll value proposition, although the immediate financial impact was not disclosed. EarnIn Partners with Workday to Bring Enhanced Direct Deposit to Millions of Working Americans
• Positive Sentiment: Technical indicators had recently improved. Zacks reported that WDAY moved above its 200-day moving average, a development often viewed as a sign of improving long-term momentum and potential technical support. Workday Crossed Above the 200-Day Moving Average
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and investor attention remains elevated. Zacks highlighted Workday as a highly followed, top-ranked growth stock. However, these style rankings and trend-based articles do not represent new earnings guidance or a fundamental change in the company’s outlook. Workday Is a Top-Ranked Growth Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Macroeconomic pressure was the main near-term headwind. U.S. stocks declined after the Fed maintained its policy rate amid a split decision, increasing uncertainty over the timing of future rate cuts. Higher-for-longer interest rates can weigh particularly heavily on richly valued growth and software stocks such as Workday. Equities Tumble Following Fed’s Divided Decision

Insider Transactions at Workday

In related news, insider Gerrit S. Kazmaier sold 2,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.62, for a total value of $391,795.36. Following the transaction, the insider owned 266,388 shares in the company, valued at $38,258,644.56. The trade was a 1.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, major shareholder David A. Duffield sold 107,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.74, for a total value of $14,699,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 105,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,364,400.26. The trade was a 50.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 875,020 shares of company stock worth $113,938,503. Insiders own 18.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WDAY shares. Summit Redstone set a $275.00 target price on shares of Workday in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays raised shares of Workday from an “overweight” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. William Blair upgraded Workday to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on Workday in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Workday from $206.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Workday currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.80.

Workday Stock Down 5.9%

Shares of Workday stock opened at $158.11 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Workday, Inc. has a 52-week low of $110.36 and a 52-week high of $249.85. The company has a market capitalization of $39.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $135.67 and a 200 day moving average of $139.92.

Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The software maker reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.15. Workday had a return on equity of 14.75% and a net margin of 8.60%.The company had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.23 earnings per share. Workday’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Workday, Inc. will post 5.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Workday Company Profile

Workday, Inc (NASDAQ: WDAY) is a provider of cloud-based enterprise applications focused on human capital management (HCM) and financial management. Founded in 2005 by Dave Duffield and Aneel Bhusri following their tenure at PeopleSoft, the company develops software-as-a-service solutions that help organizations manage workforce and financial processes in a unified, cloud-native environment. Workday’s platform emphasizes continuous updates, data security, and a configurable architecture aimed at large and mid-sized enterprises.

The company’s product portfolio centers on Workday Human Capital Management and Workday Financial Management, with additional offerings for payroll, talent management, workforce planning and analytics.