Due to strong growth among business customers, software company Zoom had a much better fourth quarter than expected. In the last three months of last year, turnover increased by 18 percent compared to the previous year to almost 600 million euros. Nevertheless, the company recorded more than 98 million euros in losses in the same period.
Cutting into your own flesh
‘Something can be added to those figures,’ says investment strategist Wim Zwanenburg of Stroeve and Lemberger. ‘Because the adjusted earnings per share came in well above expectations.’ The company has therefore been able to limit net losses against expectations.
But despite the financial windfalls, Zoom is still going to lay off 1,300 employees. ‘The market is looking at that with fear. But I have to admit, the company’s CEO is handing in 98 percent of his salary this fiscal year. And his fellow directors, he also shortens them by 20 percent,’ says Zwanenburg.
artificial intelligence
If you look further back in Zoom’s books, you will see that the exorbitant growth that the company had in corona times has long since passed. ‘That is why Zoom is now also involved in product development’, adds Zwanenburg. ‘During the presentation of the quarterly figures, there was a lot about AI – artificial intelligence, in other words.’ Zoom wants to bet on artificial intelligence. The company calls the technology a “new industrial revolution.”
‘Video conferencing is quite common.’
For example, a digital assistant must be installed and meetings must be immediately summarized and translated by AI. And it doesn’t stop there: the company even wants to train staff with artificial intelligence. He should then imitate customers and give tips.
“Niche Player”
‘As a result, they manage to maintain themselves as a niche player,’ says Zwanenburg. According to the investment strategist, Zoom will certainly not go under in the emerging AI wave. The software giant is by no means the only one investing in the technology, Microsoft and Google are also fully engaged in it.
But AI or not, Zwanenburg also thinks that Zoom’s ‘core business’ will not disappear: ‘Video conferencing is quite commonplace among the large companies and Zoom facilitates that quite well.’
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