Autodesk Stock Sinks as Solid Results Offset by CFO Change

Autodesk (ADSK) shares fell 6% Wednesday, a day after the design software maker’s solid results were overshadowed by questions about the effect of a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) change.

The company reported fiscal 2025 third-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.17, with revenue rising 11% year-over-year to $1.57 billion. Both exceeded consensus forecasts of analysts polled by Visible Alpha, although GAAP EPS of $1.27 narrowly missed expectations. 

Billings increased 28% to $1.54 billion. Subscription plan revenue gained 11% to $1.46 billion. Design revenue was up 9% to $1.30 billion, and Make revenue jumped 28% to $171 million.

Interim CFO Besty Rafael said “macroeconomic, policy, and geopolitical challenges, and the underlying momentum of the business, were consistent with the last few quarters with continued strong renewal rates and headwinds to new business growth.” 

Interim CFO Being Replaced

In a separate release, the company explained that Rafael will be leaving the job at the end of the fiscal year. She is being replaced by Janesh Moorjani, who was most recently CFO and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of artificial intelligence (AI) search company Elastic N.V. (ESTC).

Rafael assumed the post in May, when Autodesk released results of an internal investigation of its free cash flow and non-GAAP operating margin practices. In that report, the audit committee proposed some remedial measures that included “reviewing certain processes around financial communications and disclosures; assessing certain company organizational functions and responsibilities; and adopting and enhancing policies and processes related to the matters investigated.”

Autodesk’s estimates for current-quarter adjusted EPS of $2.10 to $2.16 and revenue of $1.623 billion to $1.638 billion were basically in line with expectations.

Despite today’s decline, shares of Autodesk are about 23% higher year-to-date.