SAP shares have fallen by 2.9% (the most since June) because of “fewer new cloud bookings”.

The multinational software corporation’s revenue came in at US$6.63billion – “weaker-than-expected subscriptions for its cloud business”, according to Industry Week.

Natixis analysts, led by Stuart Jeffrey, said via email: “Business trends are consistent with prior quarters with growth still solid and the rate of margin decline easing.

“While underlying business trends appear good, the scope for consensus earnings upgrades appears limited at this point in time — consistent with results over the past year.”

SAP is now investing in cloud products and services to challenge Salesforce.com, its industry leader.

Written by Leah Alger