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Dynatrace, Inc.: Q4 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q4 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 13 May 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 18 new. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • ARR passed $2 billion: Total ARR reached $2,054 million, up 18% as reported and 16% in constant currency. This is the fourth consecutive quarter of 16% constant currency ARR growth. Source
  • Log management fastest growing category: Log management remained the fastest-growing major product category. Fourth-quarter consumption grew more than 100% year over year. Source
  • Record 22 large deals in Q4: The company closed 22 deals above $1 million in annual contract value in the quarter, a record. Nine of them were new logos. Source
  • Full-year operating margins stated: Fiscal 2026 GAAP operating margin was 12%, compared with 11% in fiscal 2025. Non-GAAP operating margin was 29% in both years. Source
  • Q4 GAAP margin hit by impairment: Fourth-quarter GAAP operating margin was 7%, against 10% a year earlier. The quarter included an $18.5 million impairment of long-lived assets and $28.1 million of transaction, restructuring and other charges. Non-GAAP operating margin was 27%. Source
  • Full-year free cash flow $529 million: Fiscal 2026 free cash flow was $529 million, a 26% margin, against $431 million in fiscal 2025. Fourth-quarter free cash flow was $212 million, a 40% margin. Source
  • Q4 buybacks reached $224 million: Fourth-quarter repurchases were $224 million for 5.9 million shares at an average price of $37.71. The release states this was a 40% sequential increase. Source

“As we look ahead, our objective is to accelerate ARR growth while delivering balanced growth and profitability.”

Rick McConnell, CEO of Dynatrace

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
ARR SourceFull year fiscal 2027$2,382 - $2,402 million; as reported 16% - 17%; constant currency 15.5% - 16.5%New
Total revenue SourceFirst quarter fiscal 2027$547 - $551 million; as reported 15%; constant currency 13% - 14%New
Total revenue SourceFull year fiscal 2027$2,317 - $2,335 million; as reported 15% - 16%; constant currency 14% - 15%New
Subscription revenue SourceFirst quarter fiscal 2027$523 - $527 million; as reported 14% - 15%; constant currency 13% - 14%New
Subscription revenue SourceFull year fiscal 2027$2,217 - $2,235 million; as reported 15% - 16%; constant currency 14% - 15%New
Non-GAAP income from operations SourceFirst quarter fiscal 2027$150 - $154 millionNew
Non-GAAP income from operations SourceFull year fiscal 2027$682 - $690 millionNew
Non-GAAP operating margin SourceFirst quarter fiscal 202727.5% - 28%New
Non-GAAP operating margin SourceFull year fiscal 202729.5%New
Non-GAAP net income SourceFirst quarter fiscal 2027$130 - $134 millionNew
Non-GAAP net income SourceFull year fiscal 2027$584 - $594 millionNew
Non-GAAP net income per diluted share SourceFirst quarter fiscal 2027$0.44 - $0.45New
Non-GAAP net income per diluted share SourceFull year fiscal 2027$1.93 - $1.95New
Diluted weighted average shares SourceFirst quarter fiscal 2027298 - 299 million sharesNew
Diluted weighted average shares SourceFull year fiscal 2027302 - 304 million sharesNew
Free cash flow SourceFull year fiscal 2027$613 - $620 millionNew
Free cash flow margin SourceFull year fiscal 202726.5%New
Foreign exchange effect SourceFull year fiscal 2027about $10 million on ARR; about $15 million on revenueNew

What changed from last quarter

  • New guidance: Guidance issued for the first quarter and full year of fiscal 2027. Source
  • New: Acquired DevCycle, a feature management platform on the OpenFeature standard, for progressive delivery within the Dynatrace platform. Source
  • New: Acquired Bindplane, an open-standards-based telemetry pipeline company, to add to AI-powered observability. Source
  • Ended: The initial $500 million share repurchase program was completed. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • ARR passed $2 billion: Total ARR reached $2,054 million, up 18% as reported and 16% in constant currency. This is the fourth consecutive quarter of 16% constant currency ARR growth. Source
  • Quarterly revenue grew 19%: Total revenue was $532 million, up 19%, or 16% in constant currency. Subscription revenue was $506 million, also up 19%. Source
  • Full-year revenue rose 19%: Fiscal 2026 total revenue was $2,018 million, up 19%, or 17% in constant currency, compared with $1,699 million in fiscal 2025. Source
  • Double-digit net new ARR growth: The company reported double-digit net new ARR growth in the period, alongside passing $2 billion in total ARR. Source

Products and customers

  • Log management fastest growing category: Log management remained the fastest-growing major product category. Fourth-quarter consumption grew more than 100% year over year. Source
  • AWS Marketplace sales passed $1 billion: Sales through AWS Marketplace surpassed $1 billion, which management described as a key indicator of hyperscaler engagement. Source
  • AI assistant and developer integrations: The Dynatrace MCP server now connects to Claude Code, Cowork and Chat. The GitHub Advanced Security integration shares runtime context of Kubernetes environments with developers and security teams. Source
  • Gartner Peer Insights recognition: Dynatrace was named a Customers' Choice in the 2025 Gartner Peer Insights Voice of the Customer report for observability platforms. Source

“We significantly increased the pace of our share buyback in the fourth quarter, repurchasing $224 million of Dynatrace stock,”

Jim Benson, Chief Financial Officer

Deals and go-to-market

  • Record 22 large deals in Q4: The company closed 22 deals above $1 million in annual contract value in the quarter, a record. Nine of them were new logos. Source
  • Average deal size increased: Management attributed a higher average deal size to ongoing traction in its go-to-market strategy. Source

Costs, margins and profit

  • Full-year operating margins stated: Fiscal 2026 GAAP operating margin was 12%, compared with 11% in fiscal 2025. Non-GAAP operating margin was 29% in both years. Source
  • Q4 GAAP margin hit by impairment: Fourth-quarter GAAP operating margin was 7%, against 10% a year earlier. The quarter included an $18.5 million impairment of long-lived assets and $28.1 million of transaction, restructuring and other charges. Non-GAAP operating margin was 27%. Source
  • Gross margins by period: Non-GAAP gross margin was 84% for fiscal 2026 and 83% for the fourth quarter. GAAP gross margin was 82% for the full year and 81% for the quarter. Source
  • Prior-year net income included tax benefit: Fiscal 2026 GAAP net income was $163 million, against $484 million in fiscal 2025. The prior year included an income tax benefit from an intra-entity IP transfer. Source
  • Research and sales spending rose: Full-year research and development expense was $474 million, against $385 million in fiscal 2025. Sales and marketing expense was $690 million, against $606 million. Source

“This uptick reflects our conviction in Dynatrace’s operational momentum, long term growth and cash flow trajectory, and the underlying value of our shares.”

Jim Benson, Chief Financial Officer

Cash flow and balance sheet

  • Full-year free cash flow $529 million: Fiscal 2026 free cash flow was $529 million, a 26% margin, against $431 million in fiscal 2025. Fourth-quarter free cash flow was $212 million, a 40% margin. Source
  • Current deferred revenue rose: Current deferred revenue was $1,241 million at March 31, 2026, against $1,088 million a year earlier. Source
  • Cash balance reached $1.1 billion: Cash and cash equivalents were $1,097 million at March 31, 2026, up from $1,017 million a year earlier. Source

Capital and shareholder returns

  • Q4 buybacks reached $224 million: Fourth-quarter repurchases were $224 million for 5.9 million shares at an average price of $37.71. The release states this was a 40% sequential increase. Source
  • Full-year repurchases of $479 million: Repurchases of common stock in fiscal 2026 totalled $479 million, against $173 million in fiscal 2025. Source
  • New $1 billion program in use: Fourth-quarter purchases of $151 million were made under the $1 billion program announced in February 2026. Source
  • Buybacks excluded from guidance: Fiscal 2027 guidance does not include the effect of any share repurchases made during fiscal 2027. Source
  • Shares outstanding declined: Shares issued and outstanding were 294.7 million at March 31, 2026, down from 299.8 million a year earlier. Source

Strategy and acquisitions

  • Platform positioned as control plane: Management described the platform as the intelligence engine for deterministic AI and contextual analytics, and as the control plane for agentic action. Source
  • Platform aimed at system resilience: Management said the platform helps customers toward more autonomous operations and better business outcomes through system resilience and AI reliability. Source
  • Cash paid for acquisitions $6 million: Fourth-quarter cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired, was $6 million. Source

Coming up, as management said on 13 May 2026

  • Continued investment in innovation: Management said it will keep investing in innovation and growth while delivering value to shareholders. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.