External broker reports(aggregated public sources), CMB International

CMB International

External broker reports(aggregated public sources)

Incorporated in Hong Kong, supported by the mainland and targeting in global market, CMB International Capital Corporation Limited (“CMBI”) is an integrated financial institution providing comprehensive and professional services. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Merchants Bank ("CMB"), by leveraging on the Group’s synergy and coordination in domestic and overseas markets, as well as CMB’s strong resources and outstanding social reputation, CMBI and its subsidiaries have been actively implementing diversified business strategies and set up an overall layout of main business segments including Corporate Finance, Asset Management, Wealth Management, Global Markets and Structured Finance, etc. Adhering to the philosophy of “being clients oriented and increasing our own values by the way of creating value for clients”, CMBI endeavors to provide quality and integrated financial services to institutional, corporate and individual customers both domestic and overseas including Hong Kong IPO sponsorship and underwriting, share placement and rights issue for listed companies, financial advisors, bonds issuance services, asset management, direct investment, wealth management, equity sales and trading, etc.

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul><li>We analysed a sample of 83 Hong Kong- and US-listed software and related technology companies (49 software and 34 related technology companies) to identify the drivers of their recent share price recovery.</li><li>By comparing revenue growth, margin changes and AI commercialisation progress, we seek to quantify AI's tangible contribution to fundamentals and assess whether software has the potential to become a new major trading theme.</li><li>Our key findings are: 1) supported by continued economic resilience, revenue growth of software companies accelerated at a broader range in 2Q26 than a year earlier, although AI's tangible contribution to fundamentals still varies across subsectors; 2) the current US software share price rebound (25 Jun to 8 Oct, same below) has been driven mainly by valuation recovery, with stronger recoveries among stocks whose fundamentals benefit from AI; and 3) among all software subsectors, infrastructure software delivered the largest revenue growth acceleration and margin improvement in 2Q26, followed by cybersecurity.</li></ul><p><em>Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.</em></p>

We analysed a sample of 83 Hong Kong- and US-listed software and related technology companies (49 software and 34 related technology companies) to identify the drivers of their recent share price recovery.By comparing revenue growth, margin changes and AI commercialisation progress, we seek to quantify AI's tangible contribution to fundamentals and assess whether software has the potential to become a new major trading theme.Our key findings are: 1) supported by continued economic resilience, revenue growth of software companies accelerated at a broader range in 2Q26 than a year earlier, although AI's tangible contribution to fundamentals still varies across subsectors; 2) the current US software share price rebound (25 Jun to 8 Oct, same below) has been driven mainly by valuation recovery, with stronger recoveries among stocks whose fundamentals benefit from AI; and 3) among all software subsectors, infrastructure software delivered the largest revenue growth acceleration and margin improvement in 2Q26, followed by cybersecurity.Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.

Software & IT Services - Broad recovery, a selective opportunity

Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul><li>GitLab reported its second quarter fiscal year 2027 results with a 21% year-over-year revenue increase to $286.3 million and a non-GAAP operating income of $42.6 million, translating to a 15% operating margin.</li><li>The company achieved its largest gross bookings quarter ever, and net annual recurring revenue (ARR) expanded by over 40%, marking one of the company’s strongest growth periods in recent years.</li><li>First orders grew more than 100% year-over-year, signaling successful new customer acquisition efforts, supported by a dedicated sales organization and product-led strategies designed to attract a broader range of customers.</li></ul>

GitLab reported its second quarter fiscal year 2027 results with a 21% year-over-year revenue increase to $286.3 million and a non-GAAP operating income of $42.6 million, translating to a 15% operating margin.The company achieved its largest gross bookings quarter ever, and net annual recurring revenue (ARR) expanded by over 40%, marking one of the company’s strongest growth periods in recent years.First orders grew more than 100% year-over-year, signaling successful new customer acquisition efforts, supported by a dedicated sales organization and product-led strategies designed to attract a broader range of customers.

GitLab’s $20 Million Flex Launch — Can A New Monetization Model Accelerate Growth?

<ul><li>GitLab Inc. reported first quarter fiscal year 2027 results, demonstrating continued growth amid a challenging macroeconomic backdrop and industry transitions.</li><li>The company generated $264 million in revenue, marking a 23% year-over-year increase and outperforming guidance by 4 points.</li><li>Operating profit on a non-GAAP basis reached $38 million with a 14% operating margin, a 200 basis point improvement year-over-year.</li></ul>

GitLab Inc. reported first quarter fiscal year 2027 results, demonstrating continued growth amid a challenging macroeconomic backdrop and industry transitions.The company generated $264 million in revenue, marking a 23% year-over-year increase and outperforming guidance by 4 points.Operating profit on a non-GAAP basis reached $38 million with a 14% operating margin, a 200 basis point improvement year-over-year.

GitLab’s Agentic Engineering Push: Is Duo The Next Big DevSecOps Story?

Covering IPOs, Healthcare and Technology Stocks

Andrei Zakharov

<ul>
<li>GitLab shares have materially underperformed the NASDAQ; GTLB shares down ~28% over the year versus a 14.5% gain on the NASDAQ and a 10.6% loss on the IGV.</li>
<li>Shares saw pressure early in the year because investors reassessed the company’s long-term growth profile in the context of the AI transition in software development.</li>
<li>The stock has since bottomed in the low $20s and gained ~44%. I continue to like GTLB for its superior gross margins, improving FCF and $400M in authorized share buyback.</li>
</ul>


GitLab shares have materially underperformed the NASDAQ; GTLB shares down ~28% over the year versus a 14.5% gain on the NASDAQ and a 10.6% loss on the IGV.
Shares saw pressure early in the year because investors reassessed the company’s long-term growth profile in the context of the AI transition in software development.
The stock has since bottomed in the low $20s and gained ~44%. I continue to like GTLB for its superior gross margins, improving FCF and $400M in authorized share buyback.


2026 High Conviction Update: GitLab Inc., Valuation Is Cheap But No Major Catalysts In Sight

<ul><li>GitLab demonstrated solid financial progress in fiscal year 2026, with annual recurring revenue (ARR) surpassing $1 billion and adjusted free cash flow increasing by over 80% to $220 million, alongside nearly seven percentage points of margin expansion year-over-year.</li><li>The company reported its highest net new ARR on both a yearly and quarterly basis, supported by customer growth and retention metrics that remained stable or improved, including a gross retention rate exceeding 90% and the lowest churn in four years.</li><li>Growth in the premium Ultimate product segment contributed significantly, representing 56% of ARR and accounting for nine of the top ten deals in the quarter.</li></ul>

GitLab demonstrated solid financial progress in fiscal year 2026, with annual recurring revenue (ARR) surpassing $1 billion and adjusted free cash flow increasing by over 80% to $220 million, alongside nearly seven percentage points of margin expansion year-over-year.The company reported its highest net new ARR on both a yearly and quarterly basis, supported by customer growth and retention metrics that remained stable or improved, including a gross retention rate exceeding 90% and the lowest churn in four years.Growth in the premium Ultimate product segment contributed significantly, representing 56% of ARR and accounting for nine of the top ten deals in the quarter.

GitLab Is Reinventing Developer Workflows with AI — But Can It Outpace Fierce Competition?

United States

GitLab Inc. designs and develops software solutions. The Company offers platform for authentication, authorization, devops score, audit, and value stream management. GitLab serves customers worldwide.

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Gitlab (GTLB US)

Software & IT Services - Broad recovery, a selective opportunity

We analysed a sample of 83 Hong Kong- and US-listed software and related technology companies (49 software and 34 related technology companies)...

CMB International

GitLab’s $20 Million Flex Launch — Can A New Monetization Model Accelerate Growth?

GitLab reported its second quarter fiscal year 2027 results with a 21% year-over-year revenue increase to $286.3 million and a non-GAAP operating...

Baptista Research

GitLab’s Agentic Engineering Push: Is Duo The Next Big DevSecOps Story?

GitLab Inc. reported first quarter fiscal year 2027 results, demonstrating continued growth amid a challenging macroeconomic backdrop and industry...

Baptista Research

2026 High Conviction Update: GitLab Inc., Valuation Is Cheap But No Major Catalysts In Sight

GitLab is my 2026 high conviction idea in the U.S. software sector. In my follow-up piece, I provide a brief update, focus on investor concerns...

Andrei Zakharov

GitLab Is Reinventing Developer Workflows with AI — But Can It Outpace Fierce Competition?

GitLab demonstrated solid financial progress in fiscal year 2026, with annual recurring revenue (ARR) surpassing $1 billion and adjusted free cash...

Baptista Research

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