Autodesk reported a strong start to fiscal 2026 (QQ1), delivering revenue growth of 15% year over year (16% in constant currency) to $1.625 billion, and reporting meaningful non-GAAP operating margin expansion to 37% despite one-time charges. Management highlighted the impact of the new transaction model, EBAs (enterprise business agreements), and continued strength in AECO and the Autodesk Store as key drivers of topline performance. Free cash flow was robust at $556 million for the quarter, supporting a favorable capital allocation stance including ongoing share repurchases and a push toward a lower stock-based compensation ratio over time. Importantly, Autodesk reaffirmed its strategic emphasis on cloud, platform, and AI, while continuing to optimize its go-to-market and channel architecture to improve efficiency and pricing power.
Looking ahead, the company raised the bottom end of its guidance to reflect ongoing operating leverage and disciplined cost control, while acknowledging macroeconomic and FX headwinds. The full-year guidance implies billings of $7.16–$7.31 billion, revenue of $6.925–$6.995 billion, and free cash flow of $2.1–$2.2 billion, with underlying revenue growth still targeted around the mid-teens in constant currency. Management underscored that FX movements have provided a partial tailwind, while the new transaction model continues to contribute meaningfully to revenue and billings. Investors should monitor the cadence of renewal activity, the execution of the sales and marketing optimization plan, the continued integration of AI into product workstreams (Fusion, Forma, ACC, FormaBoard), and the rate at which channel productivity recovers as onboarding of customers to the new model matures.
Overall, Autodesk’s QQ1 performance reinforces its position as a diversified, AI-enabled software platform provider with a strong backlog, healthy cash generation, and a clear multi-year path to margin expansion through productivity gains, disciplined cost management, and a broadened addressable market in construction, AECO, and manufacturing.