CEO Andrew Anagnost Outlines New Focus on Construction, Manufacturing and Production Markets
Autodesk is eliminating about 1,150 positions, reducing overall staff by about 13 percent as part of a restructuring plan aimed at keeping spending down as the company makes new investments in the next fiscal year.
In a conference call announcing third-quarter financial results for the company, CEO Andrew Anagnost took pains to specify that the cuts are not in response to “external pressure” or financial difficulties but rather as part of a plan to “rebalance” the company’s investments and take advantage of long-term industry trends.
Anagnost specified that the company will be “maintaining development on [its] core products,” but the media and entertainment market segment was not a subject of discussion. Anagnost instead outlined a strategy focused on the company’s business in the manufacturing, construction and production industries.
“To fund these growth areas, we must rebalance resources and divest where it makes sense,” Anagnost said during the call. “We will therefore divest in some research and development activities that are not well aligned with reimagining construction, manufacturing and production. We will also close some Autodesk sites that are no longer aligned with our global location and talent acquisition strategy.”
Autodesk says it expects to take a pre-tax restructuring charge of between $135 million and $149 million, with the majority of that coming in the company’s fourth quarter, which ends January 31, 2018.
Autodesk’s announced quarterly earnings actually beat estimates by $0.01, but Wall Street was not overly impressed with the results — the company’s stock was trading at $110 as this story published, down more than 15% from yesterday’s close.
