Q1 Earnings Highs And Lows: BlackLine (NASDAQ:BL) Vs The Rest Of The Finance and HR Software Stocks

The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who not so much). Let’s take a look at how finance and hr software stocks fared in Q1, starting with BlackLine (NASDAQ:BL).

Organizations are constantly looking to improve organizational efficiencies, whether it is financial planning, tax management or payroll. Finance and HR software benefit from the SaaS-ification of businesses, large and small, who much prefer the flexibility of cloud-based, web-browser delivered software paid for on a subscription basis than the hassle and expense of purchasing and managing on-premise enterprise software.

The 13 finance and hr software stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q1. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.4% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 1.2% below.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 5% on average since the latest earnings results.

BlackLine (NASDAQ:BL)

Started in 2001 by software engineer Therese Tucker, one of the very few women founders who took their companies public, BlackLine (NASDAQ:BL) provides software for organizations to automate accounting and finance tasks.

BlackLine reported revenues of $166.9 million, up 6% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, and overall, it was a very strong quarter for the company with EPS guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

“BlackLine’s first quarter delivered solid results with bookings exceeding expectations, driven by improved execution along with continued margin expansion,” said Owen Ryan, Co-CEO of BlackLine.

Interestingly, the stock is up 20.4% since reporting and currently trades at $56.16.

Is now the time to buy BlackLine? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q1: Flywire (NASDAQ:FLYW)

Originally created to process international tuition payments for universities, Flywire (NASDAQ:FLYW) is a cross border payments processor and software platform focusing on complex, high-value transactions like education, healthcare and B2B payments.

Flywire reported revenues of $133.5 million, up 17% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 5%. The business had a very strong quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and revenue guidance for next quarter meeting analysts’ expectations.

Flywire achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 8.5% since reporting. It currently trades at $10.90.

Is now the time to buy Flywire? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q1: Global Business Travel (NYSE:GBTG)

Holding close ties to American Express, Global Business Travel (NYSE:GBTG) is a comprehensive travel and expense management services provider to corporations worldwide.

Global Business Travel reported revenues of $621 million, up 1.8% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 1.9%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted full-year EBITDA guidance missing analysts’ expectations.

Global Business Travel delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth in the group. As expected, the stock is down 5.7% since the results and currently trades at $6.49.

Read our full analysis of Global Business Travel’s results here.

Dayforce (NYSE:DAY)

Founded in 1992 as Ceridian, an outsourced payroll processor and transformed after the 2012 acquisition of Dayforce, Dayforce (NYSE:DAY) is a provider of cloud based payroll and HR software targeted at mid-sized businesses.

Dayforce reported revenues of $481.8 million, up 11.7% year on year. This result beat analysts’ expectations by 1.1%. However, it was a slower quarter as it recorded revenue guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations and billings in line with analysts’ estimates.

Dayforce had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is up 4.2% since reporting and currently trades at $60.65.

Read our full, actionable report on Dayforce here, it’s free.

Asure (NASDAQ:ASUR)

Created from the merger of two small workforce management companies in 2007, Asure (NASDAQ:ASUR) provides cloud based payroll and HR software for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Asure reported revenues of $34.85 million, up 10.1% year on year. This number topped analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. Zooming out, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is flat since reporting and currently trades at $9.83.

Read our full, actionable report on Asure here, it’s free.

Market Update

Thanks to the Fed’s series of rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has cooled significantly from its post-pandemic highs, drawing closer to the 2% goal. This disinflation has occurred without severely impacting economic growth, suggesting the success of a soft landing. The stock market thrived in 2024, spurred by recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November), and a notable surge followed Donald Trump’s presidential election win in November, propelling indices to historic highs. Nonetheless, the outlook for 2025 remains clouded by potential trade policy changes and corporate tax discussions, which could impact business confidence and growth. The path forward holds both optimism and caution as new policies take shape.

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