Bentley Systems Inc

Bentley Systems reported second-quarter revenue of $410.7 million, meeting Wall Street expectations with 12.8% year-on-year growth, while non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.35 beat analyst estimates by 9.8%. Annual recurring revenue reached $1.54 billion, up 11.4% from a year earlier, and billings rose 10.5% to $406.9 million. CEO Nicholas Cumins highlighted accelerating demand in public works, utilities, and especially mining, and said the company is prioritizing adoption of AI-driven engineering workflows before shifting to monetization, with new commercial models expected in 2027. The Power Line Systems business saw international revenues match its entire size at acquisition, and the Virtuoso platform for small and medium-sized businesses added over 600 new logos. Management also noted increased discretionary share repurchases and balance sheet capacity for acquisitions.

BNP Paribas initiated coverage of Bentley Systems with an Outperform rating and a $40 price target on June 18, 2026. Analyst Andrew DeGasperi highlighted the company's strong defensibility against frontier AI models, citing low software penetration in its core markets of civil infrastructure, energy exploration, and resource mining, along with limited competition. BofA also reinstated coverage with a Buy rating and a $40 price target, describing Bentley as a defensive play against AI due to structural barriers like embedded compliance and regulatory requirements. Bentley Systems stock is down nearly 20% so far in 2026, while about 80% of covering analysts remain bullish.

Bentley Systems, Qualys, and SoundHound AI shares rose sharply in afternoon trading after Guggenheim analyst John DiFucci upgraded Salesforce and ServiceNow to Buy, arguing that AI-disruption fears had pushed valuations too low. DiFucci, a noted skeptic, said he was not upgrading because of AI benefits, calling near-term AI monetization unlikely and risks very real, but that the darkest scenario was already priced in. The upgrades lifted the broader enterprise software group, with Bentley Systems up 6.4%, Qualys up 7.4%, and SoundHound AI up 5.5%. Qualys also benefited from a recent JPMorgan upgrade to Neutral from Underweight with a price target increase to $139 from $87, citing growth in vulnerability management.

Madison Mid Cap Fund added Bentley Systems to its portfolio in the first quarter of 2026, citing resilience to AI disruption and strong growth prospects. The fund noted Bentley Systems is growing recurring subscription revenues at a consistent low-double digit rate while expanding operating margins annually. Bentley Systems generated revenue of 424 million dollars in the first quarter, up 14.5 percent year-over-year. The fund believes AI will enhance designer productivity and help the architecture, engineering, and construction industry tackle a growing backlog of infrastructure projects, foreseeing many years of strong growth ahead.

Bentley Systems shares fell to a new 52-week low of $28.37 on Tuesday, marking a 60% decline from their all-time high of $71.92 in September 2021. The infrastructure software company, which went public in September 2020 alongside Palantir Technologies, has seen its stock underperform dramatically, gaining just 29% compared to Palantir's 1,510% surge over the same period. Despite slowing growth and margin pressures linked to AI disruption, 12 of 17 analysts rate the stock a Buy with a $45.21 average target price, and both Piper Sandler and BofA recently issued bullish calls, with BofA describing Bentley as a defensive play against AI disruption. The company's annual recurring revenue reached $1.49 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up 22.1% from two years earlier, and its free cash flow yield of 4.9% is the highest since its IPO.

A new study commissioned by Bentley Systems and conducted by Verdantix reveals that more than two-thirds of infrastructure organizations cite fragmented data and disconnected digital systems as their top two technical barriers to improving resilience. The report, released during London Climate Action Week, shows that while over 80% of organizations have mature or developing resilience strategies, many struggle to operationalize them due to technology and data limitations. More than 70% of organizations plan to increase spending on digital twins over the next 24 months, and half already use AI for inspections, with over 40% implementing AI-powered failure prediction. The findings highlight open digital twins as a critical enabler for unifying operational, environmental, and risk data to move from reactive maintenance to predictive insights.