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    Joshua Baer

    Research Analyst at Morgan Stanley

    Joshua Baer is an Executive Director and Software Equity Research Analyst at Morgan Stanley, specializing in in-depth research and analysis of public software companies. He covers leading firms including Monday.com, with a reputation for making impactful ratings changes such as his well-timed upgrade of Monday.com to Overweight in August 2025. With a performance track record featuring a 58.33% success rate and an 11.7% average return on investment calls, Baer has emerged as a notable analyst in the technology sector. He holds the CFA designation, and his career at Morgan Stanley demonstrates a dedicated focus on emerging trends in AI and software, though prior firm history is not currently available.

    Joshua Baer's questions to monday.com (MNDY) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to monday.com (MNDY) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer characterized fiscal 2025 as an investment year, citing headcount growth and margin compression, and asked if investors should expect to see higher, more durable growth or increased operating leverage as a result in future years.

    Answer

    Co-CEO Eran Zinman agreed that 2025 is a significant investment year for hiring in sales and R&D to capture market opportunities. He stated that the company is already seeing positive results from these investments and expects fiscal 2026 to be 'very different,' with more efficient headcount growth and a clearer realization of the benefits from 2025's investments.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Docebo (DCBO) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Docebo (DCBO) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer from Morgan Stanley asked about Docebo's AI strategy, seeking details on what management is most excited about, the current state of monetization for its AI products like Harmony, and how the company is monitoring and mitigating potential risks from AI.

    Answer

    CEO Alessio Artuffo expressed excitement about transitioning Docebo to an AI-first company, highlighting the new agentic platform, Harmony, which aims to automate tasks and shift to a learner-first model. He stated that monetization will follow after delivering customer value. To mitigate risks from new entrants or LLMs, Artuffo emphasized Docebo's unique ability to connect corporate knowledge to structured learning and a skills framework, which generic AI tools lack.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Sabre (SABR) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Sabre (SABR) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer questioned the prior guidance's optimism, asking why management didn't foresee the ongoing GDS industry and Sabre-specific mix headwinds, which were already known factors. He sought to understand the change in guidance philosophy and whether the new mid-point scenario represents the base case.

    Answer

    President, CEO & Director Kurt Ekert acknowledged that while Sabre's growth strategies remain on track, incremental market weakness emerged in June and July, prompting the revised outlook. He explained the new scenario-based guidance reflects the current market view, with the present trading environment aligning with the middle scenario, though he noted potential for upside.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Toast (TOST) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Toast (TOST) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer asked which specific products the new enterprise client Firehouse Subs is adopting. He also inquired if the launch in Australia signals a broader second wave of international expansion.

    Answer

    CFO Elena Gomez confirmed that Firehouse Subs is adopting payments along with a broad suite of products, including handhelds and KDS. CEO Aman Narang explained that the Australia launch was accelerated by the ability to deploy a full product suite from day one. While the long-term ambition is global, he did not announce further expansion, emphasizing the need to ensure success in current markets.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to DigitalOcean Holdings (DOCN) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to DigitalOcean Holdings (DOCN) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer of Morgan Stanley sought to confirm that AI/ML revenue is excluded from the Net Dollar Retention (NDR) metric and asked how the company is thinking about and incorporating the potential for lumpy, large deals into its guidance.

    Answer

    CFO Matt Steinfort confirmed that AI revenue is not yet included in NDR, as it will take time for new AI customers to mature into the 13-month cohort, and it will likely be incorporated in future quarters. Regarding large deals, CEO Paddy Srinivasan described it as a new muscle for the company, expecting lumpiness initially. Matt Steinfort added that they will be conservative in forecasting these deals and that revenue is only booked upon utilization, providing some visibility into ramps.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to CCC Intelligent Solutions Holdings (CCCS) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to CCC Intelligent Solutions Holdings (CCCS) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer of Morgan Stanley inquired about the reiterated full-year EBITDA guidance despite a Q2 beat, asking for details on expense phasing and investments. He also asked about the cause of implementation delays for EvolutionIQ (EIQ) and the steps being taken to improve the process.

    Answer

    CFO Brian Herb explained that the stable EBITDA guide is due to the timing of expenses, with higher hiring and professional fees planned for the second half of the year, offsetting a $2 million one-time cost benefit in Q2. Regarding EIQ, Herb noted that implementation timelines for a few large deals were extended, delaying revenue recognition, but this does not affect the long-term outlook. CEO Githesh Ramamurthy added that the EIQ pipeline remains strong and customer engagement is high.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Lightspeed Commerce (LSPD) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Lightspeed Commerce (LSPD) leadership • Q1 2026

    Question

    Joshua Baer of Morgan Stanley posed a two-part question on artificial intelligence, asking for a high-level view of how AI is expected to impact the retail and hospitality sectors and for details on Lightspeed's specific AI strategy.

    Answer

    Founder and CEO Dax Dasilva detailed a dual AI strategy. Internally, AI is used to automate repetitive tasks and drive efficiency in support, sales, and development. For customers, Lightspeed is deploying AI-powered features like an e-commerce web builder, menu configuration tools, and benchmarking analytics. The goal is to save merchants time on administrative tasks, allowing them to focus on high-value activities like curating products and menus.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Udemy (UDMY) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Udemy (UDMY) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer of Morgan Stanley asked for CEO Hugo Sarrazin's key observations after his first four months and for details on the pressures affecting Udemy Business's net dollar retention, specifically regarding contracts from the COVID era.

    Answer

    CEO Hugo Sarrazin detailed the "Udemy 2.0" pivot, driven by customer demand for AI reskilling and integrated learning solutions beyond a simple content catalog. CFO Sarah Blanchard explained that net dollar retention pressure stems from multi-year deals signed in 2021-2022 which lacked the robust implementation and value alignment processes now in place, leading to down-sells or churn upon renewal.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Coursera (COUR) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Coursera (COUR) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Baer of Morgan Stanley requested a profile of the typical Coursera Plus subscriber, including their behavior and career stage, and asked for an update on the scale of the subscription business.

    Answer

    CEO Greg Hart categorized subscribers broadly as 'starters, switchers, and advancers' rather than providing a single profile, noting that content interest varies geographically but is concentrated in AI, tech, and business. CFO Ken Hahn reiterated that Coursera does not disclose specific metrics on the size or growth of its subscription products.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to ServiceTitan (TTAN) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to ServiceTitan (TTAN) leadership • Q1 2026

    Question

    Joshua Baer from Morgan Stanley asked for more details on the 'stacking S curve' strategy and whether it implies a consistent, planned rollout of new trades, market segments, or Pro Products.

    Answer

    Co-Founder and President Vahe Kuzoyan emphasized the company's current focus on four key priorities: enterprise, commercial, Pro Products, and roofing. He indicated that while a long tail of other opportunities exists, the primary attention and resources are dedicated to these established S-curves for now.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to ServiceTitan (TTAN) leadership • Q1 2026

    Question

    Joshua Baer from Morgan Stanley inquired about the company's 'stacking S-curve' strategy and whether it implies a consistent plan for entering new trades or launching new products.

    Answer

    Co-Founder and President, Vahe Kuzoyan emphasized the company's focus on its current priorities: enterprise, commercial, pro products, and roofing. He acknowledged a long tail of future opportunities but stated that the primary attention remains on these four S-curves for now.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to Asana (ASAN) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to Asana (ASAN) leadership • Q1 2026

    Question

    Joshua Baer from Morgan Stanley asked about Q1 billings performance versus internal plans, after adjusting for the delayed large renewal, and requested color on the billings outlook for the rest of the year. He also asked for clarification on the 'trade-off' involved in the large deal.

    Answer

    CFO Sonalee Parekh confirmed the pro forma billings growth was around 5% in Q1, noting Q1 is a seasonally lower quarter. She guided that full-year billings should align with the revenue growth range. Regarding the large deal, Parekh confirmed it was a trade-off of a modest annual contract value (ACV) downgrade for a long-term, three-year commitment, which provides significant revenue visibility and future upsell opportunities. Co-Founder and CEO Dustin Moskovitz added that Asana's leadership was just validated by being named a leader in the Forrester Wave for collaborative work management.

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    Joshua Baer's questions to BOX (BOX) leadership

    Joshua Baer's questions to BOX (BOX) leadership • Q1 2026

    Question

    Joshua Baer of Morgan Stanley requested an update on platform revenue, specifically the early traction of AI unit consumption, and how the company is tracking towards its growth targets. He also asked about the assumptions for early renewals embedded in future guidance.

    Answer

    CEO Aaron Levie described AI unit adoption as being in its 'very early days,' with deal sizes being lumpy but showing healthy early interest across various industries for data extraction use cases. CFO Dylan Smith explained that while the company assumes some volume of early renewals in its guidance, it remains conservative, and this has been an area of outperformance recently. He noted they would update assumptions if the trend becomes more consistent.

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