Israeli firm Nice names SAP’s Russell as CEO, Q2 profit beats estimates

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli cloud software provider Nice on Thursday named SAP Chief Executive Scott Russell as its new CEO, replacing Barak Eilam, who will step down at the end of the year after a decade as CEO.

Russell, who will assume his new role on January 1, 2025, has served as chief revenue officer at the German software company for 14 years and is a member of its executive board.

Eilam, who has worked at Nice for a total of 25 years, announced in May that he would step down from his position at the end of the year but would continue as a strategic consultant in the first half of 2025.

The CEO’s announcement came as Nice reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter net income growth. Diluted earnings per share came in at $2.64, excluding one-time items, compared with $2.13 a year earlier. Revenue rose 14% to $664.4 million.

Nice was expected to post adjusted earnings of $2.58 per share on revenue of $663.5 million, according to LSEG data.

It reiterated its 2024 revenue forecast of $2.715 billion to $2.735 billion, up 15% from the midpoint, and raised its adjusted 2024 earnings per share forecast to $10.60 to $10.80, up 22% from $10.53 to $10.73 in 2023.

(Reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by David Holmes)