SAP reports 28% jump in Q4 cloud computing revenue, targets 26% growth for 2022

(Reuters) -German business software group SAP on Thursday said fourth-quarter revenue from its cloud computing business jumped 28% as more customers shift their IT operations to its cloud business database.

Cloud revenue climbed to 2.61 billion euros ($2.99 billion) in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, the company reported in a preliminary earnings statement.

SAP is targeting cloud revenue growth of up to 26% in 2022, helping its overall cloud and software revenue rise 4-6%, it said.

“More and more companies are choosing SAP to help them … build resilient supply chains and become sustainable enterprises as they move to the cloud,” Chief Executive Officer Christian Klein said in a statement.

The company saw a 6% year-on-year increase in total revenue for the quarter ended December to 7.98 billion euros, while adjusted earnings per share rose 10% to 1.86 euros.

SAP is expected to release full results on Jan. 27.

Separately, the company also announced a new 1 billion euro share repurchase programme, to be carried out in the period between Feb. 1 and Dec. 31, 2022.

($1 = 0.8731 euros)

(Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar and Bhargav Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by Chris Reese and Kenneth Maxwell)