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Workday corporate headquarters building exterior
Photo: Reuters via Investing.com

Workday Stock Rises 7% on Silver Lake Take-Private Financing

Reuters / BNN Bloomberg2 min read6 sources

Why is Workday stock up today?

Workday (WDAY) stock rose 7% to about $199 on Friday after CNBC's David Faber reported that Silver Lake's $61 billion take-private financing effort is progressing.

Key numbers

Implied deal value~$61BWould be the largest PE software take-private on record (per [4])
WDAY stock move today+7%~$199 per share as of Sept 17 close
WDAY stock surge on Aug 13+18–25%Best single day in 10 years; trading halted briefly (per [2])
WDAY FY2026 annual revenue$9.55B+13.1% vs prior year
WDAY free cash flow (FY2026)$2.78B+26.7% vs prior year — key support for buyout debt service

What happened

Workday (WDAY) stock rose 7% to about $199 on Friday after CNBC's David Faber reported that Silver Lake's $61 billion take-private financing effort is progressing. Faber said he was hearing 'more optimism' about the deal and that debt financing packages were being assembled, with equity 'continuing to be raised in a significant way'. The story began on August 13, when Reuters first reported Silver Lake was in talks to buy Workday, sending shares up 18% and briefly halting trading. At $61 billion, the deal would be the largest private equity buyout of a software company on record, edging past Silver Lake's own $55 billion Electronic Arts take-private, which closed just six weeks ago.

Why it matters

Workday makes the HR and finance software thousands of large companies rely on to run payroll, hiring, and budgets, making a change of ownership significant for its nearly 20,000 employees and millions of users. For investors, the $61 billion implied deal price means WDAY shareholders could collect a buyout premium above today's market price — but would lose those gains if talks collapse. The deal also signals that private equity still sees strong value in cash-generating software companies despite the higher borrowing costs that make mega-buyouts harder to finance.

Who this affects

Marketbullish
Medium impact
WDAY shareholders stand to gain a buyout premium if the deal closes.
Companymixed
High impact
Workday may exit public markets, freeing it from quarterly earnings pressure.
Competitorsneutral
Low impact
SAP and Oracle face a potentially better-funded private Workday rival.
Industrybullish
Medium impact
PE appetite for large profitable software take-privates remains strong.

Workday vs SAP, ServiceNow, Oracle

WorkdayWDAY$48.8B+7.0%-10%23x+13%
SAPSAP~$254B—-26%35x~9%
ServiceNowNOW——-7%—+24%
OracleORCL$433B—-11%—+17%

As of 2026-09-17

How we got here

  1. Silver Lake closes $55B Electronic Arts take-private, the prior record.

  2. Reuters reports Silver Lake in talks to buy Workday; WDAY surges 18–25%.

  3. WDAY trading briefly halted; shares post best single day in 10 years.

  4. Faber (CNBC) reports Silver Lake financing is active; WDAY rises 7%.

What to watch

  • Formal offer or walkaway: no deal timeline or exclusivity disclosed yet.Q4 2026
  • Co-investors named: sovereign wealth or pension fund equity commitments expected.Q4 2026
  • WDAY Q3 FY2027 earnings: results could shift deal valuation discussions.2026-11

Educational content only. Not investment advice.

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