Key Highlights

  • Autodesk grew second-quarter fiscal Revenue 16% to $2,046 million and raised its outlook, the scaled compounder of the group.
  • Trimble posted record annualized Recurring Revenue of $2.51 billion alongside second-quarter revenue up 11% to $972.0 million, though it also took a Goodwill charge.
  • Telos swung toward profit with second-quarter revenue up 33% to $47.7 million, led by its Security Solutions segment.
  • GDEV's second-quarter revenue fell 22% to about $94 million even as Net Income rose, an unusual combination of shrinking bookings and improving profitability.

The Nasdaq Composite entered September 2026 near record territory, but the index no longer moves as one bloc. Beneath the megacap AI trade, second-tier software and technology-services companies are being judged on their own numbers: recurring revenue, margins, Cash Flow and whether "AI" is a slide or a line item.

Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB), GDEV (NASDAQ:GDEV), Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK), Telos (NASDAQ:TLS) and Certara (NASDAQ:CERT) span that spectrum. One prints double-digit annual recurring revenue growth alongside a goodwill charge. One is shrinking bookings while lifting profit. One is compounding at scale. One just tripled its EBITDA margin. One is restructuring around software. Together they show what a maturing, rate-sensitive software tape rewards, and what it now punishes.

Every figure traces to a company release or filing.

The September 2026 Backdrop: AI Everywhere, Scrutiny Everywhere

Through early September 2026, US Equity coverage described the Nasdaq trading at or near record highs, with sentiment supported by expectations of Federal Reserve easing and by continued enthusiasm for artificial-intelligence infrastructure, reporting cited a high-profile Nvidia--OpenAI arrangement among the catalysts. That is the tape into which the five companies below reported. A rate-cut-friendly narrative helps software valuations, because these are long-duration cash-flow stories whose present value rises as discount-rate assumptions fall. But the second-quarter 2026 results season made clear that investors are increasingly separating durable, recurring-revenue franchises from businesses where growth is stalling. AI is table stakes in the messaging; the differentiator is whether it converts into billings, retention and margin.

If easing continues and AI adoption broadens from infrastructure toward application software, the more profitable, recurring-revenue names in this group could see multiple support. If macro data disappoints or AI monetisation underwhelms, the same rate sensitivity cuts the other way. Neither path is assured.

Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB): Record ARR, a Goodwill Charge, and an AI Pivot

Trimble builds geospatial, positioning and field-software technology for construction, agriculture, and transportation. For its second quarter of 2026, announced 12 August 2026, Trimble reported revenue of $972.0 million, up 11% year over year (10% organic), and annualised recurring revenue (ARR) of $2.51 billion, up 14% year over year (12% organic). Non-GAAP diluted EPS was $0.86. GAAP diluted EPS was a loss of $(2.02), driven by a $562.0 million goodwill Impairment charge tied to the Transportation & Logistics segment, which the company linked to a sustained decline in Market Capitalisation amid macroeconomic uncertainty. By segment, Field Systems generated $442.5 million, AECO (architecture, engineering, construction, owners) $388.5 million, and Transportation & Logistics $141.0 million. Trimble raised full-year 2026 guidance to revenue of $3,900–$3,950 million and non-GAAP EPS of $3.60–$3.70. Management framed the company as positioned to "accelerate AI-enabled value." the story is a software-and-recurring-revenue transition, rising ARR and healthy AECO/Field Systems margins, colliding with a non-cash impairment that flatters the headline loss but signals real pressure in T&L. What to watch: ARR durability, T&L stabilisation, and whether AI features lift retention rather than merely marketing.

GDEV Inc (NASDAQ:GDEV): Shrinking Bookings, Rising Profit

GDEV is a gaming and entertainment Holding Company headquartered in Limassol, Cyprus, whose studios include Nexters and Cubic Games. For the second quarter of 2026, released 21 August 2026, GDEV reported revenue of about $94 million, down 22% year over year, and bookings of roughly $73 million, down 21%. Yet net income rose about 20% to roughly $20 million, while adjusted EBITDA was around $20 million, down 7%. Monthly paying users fell about 23% to roughly 239,000, but average bookings per paying user rose about 5% to about $97. Franchises including Hero Wars, Pixel Gun 3D and others have surpassed 550 million installs, and GDEV sold the title Island Hoppers for $5 million. This is a classic mature-mobile-gaming profile, a smaller, higher-spending player base and tight cost control lifting profit even as the Top Line contracts. Monetisation per user is holding; audience is not. Sustaining Earnings without new hit titles or user re-acquisition is the central challenge. Watch bookings trajectory, live-ops performance in flagship franchises, and whether Marketing spend can rebuild the funnel profitably. As a Cyprus-domiciled foreign private issuer, GDEV also carries currency and disclosure nuances US-centric investors should weigh.

Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK): The Scaled Compounder Raising Its Outlook

Autodesk sells design and engineering software, AutoCAD, Revit, Fusion, across construction, Manufacturing and media. For the second quarter of fiscal 2027, ended 31 July 2026, Autodesk reported revenue of $2,046 million, up 16% year over year (14% in constant currency). GAAP EPS was $2.33 and non-GAAP EPS $3.30, with GAAP operating Margin of 29% and non-GAAP Operating Margin of 41%. Billings were $1,854 million (up 10%), remaining performance obligations $7,433 million, and free cash flow $561 million (up 24%). Autodesk raised full-year fiscal 2027 guidance to revenue of $8,295–$8,345 million and non-GAAP EPS of $12.52–$12.60. CEO Andrew Anagnost emphasised AI that "turns connected data and context into actionable project intelligence." this is the group's most complete profile, durable double-digit growth, expanding margins and strong cash conversion, plus a business-model shift toward direct billing. The AI pitch is grounded in geometry-aware tooling embedded in existing workflows, not standalone hype.

The debate is valuation versus quality. A high-margin, recurring-revenue Franchise typically commands a premium; the risk is that decelerating billings growth or macro softness in construction and manufacturing compresses the multiple. Watch RPO growth, margin trajectory and AI attach rates.

Telos Corporation (NASDAQ:TLS): A Government-Security Turnaround Takes Shape

Telos provides cyber, cloud and enterprise security to US government and commercial customers. For the second quarter of 2026, announced 10 August 2026, Telos reported total revenue of $47.7 million, up 33% year over year from $36.0 million. Security Solutions revenue rose 44% to $46.7 million, while Secure Networks fell to $1.1 million from $3.5 million. Telos swung to GAAP net income of $0.7 million from a $9.5 million loss a year earlier, and adjusted EBITDA reached $6.9 million, with margin expanding to 14.4% from 1.1%. The company raised full-year 2026 guidance to revenue of $187–$195 million. Separately, Telos reported expanding its TSA PreCheck enrollment footprint, reaching 350 locations nationwide. The Telos ID / TSA PreCheck enrollment Business is doing the heavy lifting, and the margin swing is the real headline, Operating Leverage is finally appearing. The durability question is whether enrollment-driven growth is a step-change or a one-time ramp, and whether Secure Networks stabilises. This remains a small-cap turnaround with government-budget and contract-timing risk; execution over the next several quarters, not one print, will settle the case.

Certara (NASDAQ:CERT): Restructuring a Biosimulation Franchise Around Software

Certara sells biosimulation and model-informed drug-development software and services to pharmaceutical and regulatory customers. For the second quarter of 2026, ended 30 June 2026, Certara reported total revenue of $93.3 million, up 1% year over year, with software revenue of $48.8 million (up 4%) and services revenue of $44.5 million (down 3%). Software bookings rose 9% to $50.7 million. The company posted a net loss from continuing operations of $(6.1) million and adjusted EBITDA of $26.2 million; adjusted diluted EPS was $0.08. Including discontinued operations, the net loss was $(55.3) million. Certara guided full-year 2026 revenue to $367–$382 million, completed a $100 million buyback and authorised a new $50 million program, appointed a new Chief Commercial Officer and CIO effective August 2026, and referenced work with the NVIDIA BioNeMo Agent Toolkit. The pivot toward higher-margin software, visible in faster software bookings, is the constructive thread, offset by soft services and a discontinued-operations charge tied to the divested regulatory-writing unit. Success hinges on software mix, AI-enabled discovery tooling and whether restructuring savings drop to margin. Biopharma R&D-budget sensitivity is the key external risk.

What Investors Should Watch

Across the five, three variables recur. First, recurring revenue quality, ARR and RPO at Trimble and Autodesk, software bookings at Certara, because durable subscriptions are what a rate-sensitive tape pays up for. Second, margin direction: Telos's EBITDA-margin expansion and Autodesk's cash conversion are the clearest evidence that "growth plus profitability" beats growth alone. Third, whether AI is monetised or merely mentioned; management commentary across all five leans on it, but only billings and retention will validate it. Idiosyncratic watch items: T&L stabilisation at Trimble, bookings and user re-acquisition at GDEV, TSA-enrollment durability at Telos, and services stabilisation at Certara.

What a Discriminating Software Market Rewards

As of their most recent 2026 reports, Autodesk showed scaled double-digit growth with rising margins; Trimble paired record ARR with a large goodwill charge; Telos swung to profit on a sharp margin improvement; Certara grew marginally while reshaping toward software; and GDEV lifted earnings as its top line contracted. This is a software market that now discriminates between durable, cash-generative franchises and businesses fighting for growth. A friendlier rate path could support the higher-quality names, but macro, budget and monetisation risks are real and unevenly distributed.