Autodesk Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK)

The period under review demonstrates significant fluctuations in economic profit. While net operating profit after taxes (NOPAT) and invested capital generally increased between 2019 and 2023, economic profit remained consistently negative, indicating the company did not generate returns exceeding its cost of capital throughout most of the analyzed timeframe. A substantial decline in economic profit is observed in the most recent year, 2024.

NOPAT Trend

Net operating profit after taxes experienced a dramatic increase from US$41 million in 2019 to US$1,197 million in 2020. This was followed by a decrease to US$833 million in 2021, a subsequent rise to US$970 million in 2022, and a further increase to US$1,402 million in 2023. However, NOPAT decreased significantly in 2024, falling to US$493 million. This represents the lowest NOPAT value within the observed period.

Cost of Capital

The cost of capital remained relatively stable throughout the period, fluctuating between 21.83% and 22.59%. A slight increase is noted in 2024, reaching 22.35%. This consistency suggests that the company’s risk profile, as perceived by investors, did not undergo substantial changes.

Invested Capital Trend

Invested capital generally increased from US$4,412 million in 2019 to US$7,372 million in 2023. A minor decrease to US$7,325 million is observed in 2024. The consistent growth in invested capital suggests ongoing investment in the business, although the marginal decrease in 2024 warrants further investigation.

Economic Profit Analysis

Economic profit was negative in all years examined. The initial negative economic profit of US$-941 million in 2019 improved to US$-12 million in 2020, coinciding with the substantial increase in NOPAT. However, economic profit worsened again in 2021 (US$-460 million) and 2022 (US$-527 million) before showing a slight improvement in 2023 (US$-238 million). The most significant deterioration occurred in 2024, with economic profit declining to US$-1,144 million. This substantial negative value indicates a considerable shortfall in returns relative to the cost of capital in the latest year.

The widening gap between NOPAT and the cost of capital, particularly evident in 2024, is a key concern. While increases in NOPAT and invested capital are positive indicators, the consistently negative economic profit suggests that the company’s investments are not generating sufficient returns to cover its cost of capital. The sharp decline in economic profit in 2024 requires further scrutiny to determine the underlying causes and potential corrective actions.

Net Income (Loss)

The net income demonstrates significant fluctuations over the observed periods. Starting from a loss of US$81 million in January 2019, the company experienced a substantial turnaround, achieving a positive net income of US$215 million in January 2020. This upward trend accelerated noticeably in January 2021, reaching a peak of US$1,208 million. Subsequently, net income declined to US$497 million in January 2022 but rebounded to US$823 million in January 2023 and further increased to US$906 million by January 2024. The data suggests a period of recovery and growth following an initial loss, followed by some volatility, with the most recent figures indicating a strengthening profit position.

Net Operating Profit After Taxes (NOPAT)

NOPAT shows a rising trend from January 2019 through January 2023, starting at US$41 million and climbing consistently to a peak of US$1,402 million in January 2023. After a low base in 2019, there was a rapid increase to US$1,197 million in 2020, followed by a decrease to US$833 million in January 2021. NOPAT then resumed growth with US$970 million in January 2022 and peaked notably in January 2023. However, in January 2024, NOPAT declined sharply to US$493 million. This pattern indicates periods of strong operational profitability, especially between 2020 and 2023, though the most recent year shows a significant reduction.

The financial data indicates notable fluctuations in both the income tax provision (benefit) and cash operating taxes over the analyzed periods.

Income Tax Provision (Benefit)

The income tax provision demonstrates considerable volatility throughout the periods. Initially, it increased from 38 million USD in 2019 to 80 million USD in 2020, indicating a rising tax expense. However, in 2021, there is a significant benefit recorded, reflected by a negative provision of -662 million USD, which represents a tax benefit rather than an expense. This sharp reversal may suggest extraordinary tax adjustments or recognition of deferred tax assets during that period. Subsequent years show a return to positive provisions, rising from 68 million USD in 2022 to 123 million USD in 2023, and reaching 230 million USD in 2024, indicating increased tax expenses once again. Overall, the income tax provision reflects uneven tax charges with an exceptional benefit in 2021 followed by increasing tax liabilities.

Cash Operating Taxes

Cash operating taxes display a generally upward trend across the years, with some variation in magnitude. Starting at 64 million USD in 2019, cash taxes increased slightly to 82 million USD in 2020. A more substantial rise is seen in 2021 with 130 million USD, despite the negative income tax provision in the same year, suggesting a divergence between cash taxes paid and accounting tax charges. Cash taxes decreased to 100 million USD in 2022 but then surged significantly to 415 million USD in 2023 before declining to 310 million USD in 2024. This pattern indicates increasing cash tax outflows, peaking in 2023, which might reflect higher taxable income or changes in tax payment schedules.

In summary, the data reveal inconsistencies between accounting tax provisions and cash tax payments, particularly highlighted by the negative income tax provision in 2021 juxtaposed with rising cash operating taxes. The overall trend suggests increasing tax-related cash outflows in recent years, and significant fluctuations in tax accounting entries, which could be attributable to changes in tax regulations, one-time adjustments, or differences in timing between tax accruals and payments.

The financial data presents a mixed set of trends over the six-year period ending in January 2024. The following analysis focuses on the reported debt and leases, stockholders’ equity, and invested capital, highlighting significant movements and potential implications.

Total Reported Debt & Leases

The debt and lease obligations experienced fluctuations over the period. Starting at 2,445 million USD in early 2019, the total increased slightly to 2,545 million USD by 2020, followed by a noticeable reduction to 2,105 million USD in 2021. However, debt levels surged again in 2022, reaching 3,060 million USD, which is the highest in the provided timeframe. Subsequently, it declined to 2,666 million USD in 2023 and further to 2,626 million USD in early 2024. The pattern suggests an overall cyclical adjustment in financing strategy, with a peak possibly reflecting increased borrowing or lease arrangements in 2022, and partial deleveraging thereafter.

Stockholders’ Equity (Deficit)

The stockholders’ equity profile shows a significant transformation from a deficit position to a positive equity base. At the start of 2019, equity was negative at -211 million USD, indicating liabilities exceeded assets. This deficit narrowed to -139 million USD in 2020 before turning positive at 966 million USD in 2021. Although there was a slight decrease to 849 million USD in 2022, the trend reversed with equity rising substantially to 1,145 million USD in 2023 and 1,855 million USD in 2024. This improvement demonstrates strengthening financial health, reflecting either retained earnings growth, capital injections, or asset revaluation effectively reducing the deficit and building shareholder value.

Invested Capital

Invested capital steadily increased over the analyzed periods. Commencing at 4,412 million USD in 2019, it rose to 5,535 million USD in 2020, and 5,723 million USD in 2021. Growth accelerated in the following years, reaching 6,835 million USD in 2022, peaking at 7,372 million USD in 2023, and slightly declining to 7,325 million USD in 2024. The general upward movement of invested capital suggests ongoing investments in operations, fixed assets, or other long-term assets, supporting expansion or optimization strategies. The marginal drop in 2024 may reflect asset disposals or adjustments but does not significantly reverse the growth trend.

In summary, the company's financial structure demonstrates evolving leverage with a notable peak in debt in 2022, followed by partial reduction. Simultaneously, a transition from equity deficit to a positive and growing equity base indicates improving solvency and capital adequacy. Continuous increases in invested capital highlight sustained investment activity, supporting business growth and operational capacity enhancement.

The economic spread ratio exhibited considerable fluctuation over the observed period. Initially negative, the ratio demonstrated a significant improvement between 2019 and 2020, followed by a period of relative stability before declining sharply in the most recent year.

Economic Spread Ratio

The economic spread ratio began at -21.34% in 2019, indicating a substantial shortfall in returns relative to the cost of capital. A marked improvement occurred in 2020, with the ratio increasing to -0.21%, suggesting a near-breakeven performance. The ratio remained negative, but relatively stable, at -8.04% and -7.71% in 2021 and 2022, respectively. However, a substantial deterioration was observed in 2023, with the ratio decreasing to -3.22%, and a further decline to -15.62% in 2024. This recent trend suggests a widening gap between returns and the cost of capital.

Economic profit mirrored the fluctuations in the economic spread ratio. Significant negative economic profit was recorded in 2019, 2021, 2022, and particularly in 2024. The lowest economic profit occurred in 2024 at -1,144 US$ million, while the least negative economic profit was recorded in 2020 at -12 US$ million.

Invested Capital

Invested capital consistently increased from 4,412 US$ million in 2019 to 7,372 US$ million in 2023. A slight decrease was observed in 2024, with invested capital falling to 7,325 US$ million. This suggests a period of growth in capital deployment, followed by a stabilization in the most recent year.

The combination of a generally increasing invested capital base and a fluctuating, but ultimately declining, economic spread ratio indicates that the company’s investments are generating returns that are increasingly less able to cover the cost of capital. The substantial decline in the economic spread ratio in 2024, coupled with the highest negative economic profit, warrants further investigation.

The economic profit margin exhibited considerable fluctuation between January 31, 2019, and January 31, 2024. While adjusted net revenue generally increased over this period, economic profit remained negative, impacting the economic profit margin.

Economic Profit Margin Trend

The economic profit margin began at -34.79% in 2019, representing a substantial negative value. A significant improvement was observed in 2020, with the margin increasing to -0.28%. However, this improvement was short-lived, as the margin deteriorated to -11.10% in 2021 and -10.94% in 2022. A further, though less dramatic, improvement occurred in 2023, reaching -4.10%. The most recent year, 2024, saw a sharp decline, with the economic profit margin falling to -22.08%.

Relationship to Adjusted Net Revenue

Adjusted net revenue increased from US$2,706 million in 2019 to US$5,795 million in 2023, demonstrating growth. However, revenue decreased to US$5,181 million in 2024. Despite the overall revenue growth from 2019 to 2023, the consistently negative economic profit suggests that the cost of capital was not adequately covered by the returns generated from revenue during most of the observed period. The substantial decline in the economic profit margin in 2024, coinciding with a decrease in adjusted net revenue, indicates a worsening of this situation.

Economic Profit

Economic profit itself fluctuated significantly. After starting at -941 million in 2019, it improved substantially to -12 million in 2020. It then worsened to -460 million in 2021 and -527 million in 2022. A moderate improvement was seen in 2023 with a value of -238 million, but it declined sharply to -1,144 million in 2024. This pattern directly influences the economic profit margin and highlights the company’s struggle to generate returns exceeding its cost of capital.

The volatility in the economic profit margin, coupled with consistently negative economic profit, suggests potential challenges in capital allocation or operational efficiency. The recent deterioration in both metrics warrants further investigation.