Shares of UiPath Inc. ticked up more than 5% in extended trading today, as its strong second-quarter earnings and revenue beats overshadowed a light forecast for the current quarter.

The company reported a loss of $60.4 million, down by almost 50% from the $120.4 million loss it reported a year earlier. Earnings before certain costs such as stock compensation came to nine cents per share, while revenue rose 19% from a year earlier, to $287.3 million.

The results were better than expected, with analysts predicting UiPath to report earnings of just four cents per share on sales of $281.5 million.

UiPath’s co-Chief Executive Officer Rob Enslin highlighted the company’s annualized recurring revenue, which grew by 25% during the quarter. “I am energized by the excitement around our continuous investments in AI which are driving business outcomes for our customers,” he said.

ARR is a key metric for software-as-a-service firms such as UiPath, since it reveals its sales expectations based on subscriptions. The company added net new ARR of $59 million in the quarter.

UiPath is considered a leader in the robotic process automation market. Its software helps companies reduce costs and operational errors by automating many repetitive work-related tasks, such as data entry.

The platform is powered by artificial intelligence models that learn how employees perform common tasks in their business applications. Those models then build software “robots” that can replicate those workflows, meaning they no longer need to be done manually.

UiPath recently caused a bit of a stir when it announced in July that its other co-CEO and co-founder Daniel Dines (pictured) is set to stand down from his leadership role at the company early next year. He won’t be moving anywhere, though, as he instead aims to take on the role of UiPath’s new chief innovation officer, where he will oversee its artificial intelligence initiatives and other new projects. In other words, he’s taking a more hands-on role in the company’s research and development efforts, leaving Enslin as its sole CEO.

Dave Vellante, Wikibon analyst and co-host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s video studio, said at the time that Dines’ move “is a logical step” that “will allow him to focus on what he does best as the company enters an era of increased AI awareness.” Dines alluded to his new role in comments today, saying that harnessing the potential is something that’s on almost every executive’s agenda.

The restructuring of UiPath’s leadership is promising for the future, but in terms of its immediate prospects, the company offered a more cautious assessment. For its third quarter, it’s forecasting revenue of between $313 million and $318 million, below Wall Street’s target of $318.5 million. For the full year, UiPath sees total revenue of $1.27 billion to $1.28 billion, versus the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion.

Still, the lower guidance was balanced somewhat by UiPath’s new authorization to buy back up to $500 million worth of company stock, giving investors a chance to cash out at a higher value.

Prior to today’s gain, UiPath’s stock was up 27% in the year to date, ahead of the S&P 500 Index’s 16% average gain but below the 32.5% rise of the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite.

Photo: SiliconANGLE