Appian stock falls after Q2 revenue beat, raised full-year outlook

Appian shares fell Thursday after the software company reported fiscal second-quarter 2026 results that beat Wall Street estimates and raised its full-year outlook. Revenue rose 19% year over year to $203.3 million, ahead of the $193.5 million analyst consensus, while adjusted earnings per share of 13 cents exceeded expectations for break-even results. Growth was led by subscription revenue, which increased 19% to $157.7 million, including 23% growth in cloud subscriptions to $131.7 million. Professional services revenue rose 20% to $45.6 million. Cloud net annualized recurring revenue expansion was 115% as of June 30, 2026, pointing to continued customer spending growth on the platform. Profitability also improved. Adjusted operating income climbed to $13.6 million from $5.6 million a year earlier, while adjusted EBITDA increased to $16.2 million from $8.1 million. Appian ended the quarter with $121.1 million in cash and cash equivalents, or $167.9 million including short-term investments and marketable securities, and generated $12.1 million in operating cash flow compared with negative $1.9 million a year earlier. For the third quarter, Appian expects revenue of $214.0 million to $218.0 million, above the $207.936 million analyst consensus, and adjusted EPS of 31 cents to 35 cents versus a 32-cent consensus. The company raised its fiscal 2026 revenue outlook to $845.0 million to $853.0 million from a prior $819.0 million to $831.0 million, and increased its adjusted EPS forecast to $1.04 to $1.12 from 94 cents to $1.05. Management said on its conference call that AI is supporting higher pricing and opening new industry opportunities, while third-quarter guidance assumes cloud subscription revenue growth of 16% to 18% and total revenue growth of 12% to 14%. Appian shares were down 1.74% at $29.44 at the time of publication Thursday.