Carl Bass on R&D

Aug 20, 2009 | Hot Topics

One of the most interesting aspects of the Autodesk Q2 earnings call was a short discussion on R&D expenditures. Autodesk was making the case that it was poised to withstand the economic downturn, however long it may last, because it has been managing budgets to...

Autodesk’s ‘triple whammy’ in Q2

Aug 20, 2009 | Hot Topics

[In colloquial English, a “double whammy” is when something causes two problems at once.]The media (and investment analysts) have focused on the positive news to come out of Autodesk’s Q2 earnings release, all showing a sequential improvement: • Manufacturing division...

Some aspects of Autodesk’s business show improvement in Q2

Aug 13, 2009 | Hot Topics

Autodesk today announced results for its July quarter that were in-line expectations but still depressing. Total revenue for the quarter was $415 million, down 3% sequentially and down 33% from the second quarter of fiscal 2009.CEO Carl Bass said that these results...

Autodesk displaced worker program expands to N. Europe

Jul 30, 2009 | Hot Topics

Autodesk announced today that it was rolling out its program for displaced designers and engineers in Northern Europe, with more regions to follow. The Autodesk Assistance Program has been operational in North America since April and reports that, to date, nearly 7000...

Autodesk grant program for environmental solutions

Jul 22, 2009 | Hot Topics

Autodesk announced a cool program to award software to early-stage, clean technology companies “working to solve some of the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.” The "Clean Tech Partner Program" aims to award software bundles to 100...

Autodesk and Roopinder Tara cycle for MS research

Jul 14, 2009 | Hot Topics

Roopinder Tara, publisher of TenLinks, and a team of cyclists from Autodesk’s Lake Oswego, Oregon office will participate in a group bicycle ride to raise money to fight multiple sclerosis. The ride, on August 1 and 2, will cover as many as 150 miles.According to...

And the market breathes a sigh of relief …

Jul 13, 2009 | Hot Topics

I’ve been wrong so often on pre-announcements that I waited this time until companies announce their earnings dates: ANSYS and PTC both announced today the dates and times of their June quarter earnings calls, which means that neither is likely to announce results...

Busy busy — quick updates

Jun 23, 2009 | Hot Topics

Too busy to craft anything long or thoughtful — I know I owe you a more detailed analysis of PTC’s investor presentation — but in the meantime:- are companies getting too big? I’ve been talking to people responsible for coordinating PLM...

Autodesk ups the ante on displaced worker programs

Jun 10, 2009 | Hot Topics

Autodesk announced today that the 4,700 participants in its "Autodesk Assistance Program" have downloaded more than 5,400 products since the program was announced 6 weeks ago. Due to this success, the company is increasing the number of available products in...

Autodesk slightly exceeds (depressing) expectations

May 21, 2009 | Hot Topics

All day the news dribbled in: Credit Suisse cuts its estimate for Autodesk’s 2010 revenue to$1.684 billion from $1.713 Billion; Bank of America/Merrill Lynch thought that the "focuscould shift from [operating expenditure] cuts to revenue growth" and...