Talend SA showed no ill effects from its recent chief executive transition today as the data integration provider soundly beat both revenue and earnings estimates in its first quarter.

Revenues rose just over 18% over the same period last year, to $68.1 million, beating consensus estimates of $64.9 million. The company’s net loss of 13 cents per share was well ahead of analyst estimates of a loss of 29 cents.

Importantly for the company’s transition to a cloud-first business, annual cloud recurring revenues were $61.1 million, up 154% year-over-year on a constant currency basis. Total ARR rose 22%, to $245.9 million.

“We believe the need for fast and reliable data has become even more critical in making business decisions in the current environment,” said CEO Christal Bemont, who took the reins from Mike Tuchen in January.

In after-hours trading, Talend shared rose more than 7%. The stock is still nearly 25% below its 2020 high and more than 55% below its all-time high in September 2018.

Talend guided expectations for second-quarter revenue to between $65 million and $67 million and a net loss per share of between 31 and 34 cents. Analysts had been expecting a loss of 40 cents on $66.5 million in revenue. The company withdrew its full-year outlook, as many others have done, citing the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

The decision to withdraw guidance “was difficult and we went back and forth many times,’ said Bemont, who joined the company as CEO after 15 years at SAP SE’s Concur Technologies Inc. subsidiary. “I see a very healthy start to Q2 but I’m just coming into this role and my word is very important. I just don’t have enough vision.”

Taking over just two months before the COVID-19 pandemic forced world business shutdowns and office employees into their homes has been a baptism of fire for Bemont. “When I came in I asked myself what I wanted this culture to look like and as I was laying the foundation for that it was suddenly time to put it into action,” she said. “It forced a quick transition, but from the minute I walked in to the four walls of Talend, I have never felt more welcomed.”

The company experienced slowdowns in March as did many other tech firms, but Bemont said that even as existing orders were put on hold, “almost dollar for dollar we saw new deals pop up to replace them. People were saying quality is more important now than ever because they need to look at the data differently now. We’re starting to hear people talk about the health of their data,” Bemont said.

Despite pulling guidance for the full year, Bemont said the post-pandemic environment looks good for Talend. “I believe on the other side the demand will continue to increase,” she said. “This is about getting this engine humming and staying laser-focused because those things will be important when the demand picks up.”

Photo: Talend/Facebook