Zoom earnings preview: Could its Anthropic investment give ZM stock an extra boost?
Zoom will report its second-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings after the US market closes on August 25. Investors expect approximately $1.48 in adjusted earnings per share and $1.27 billion in revenue.
Those numbers matter, but this Zoom report has an unusual second angle. Zoom invested early in Anthropic, the company behind the Claude AI assistant. Since Anthropic’s valuation has risen sharply, Zoom’s investment may now be worth considerably more than the value previously shown on its balance sheet.
Key takeaways
-
Zoom is expected to report approximately $1.48 in adjusted EPS and $1.27 billion in revenue.
-
Investors should watch revenue guidance, enterprise growth and paid adoption of Zoom’s AI products.
-
Zoom valued its Anthropic investment at approximately $1.27 billion as of April 30.
-
That value was based on Anthropic’s February valuation of approximately $380 billion.
-
Anthropic was valued at $965 billion in a later May funding round.
-
A higher Anthropic value could boost Zoom’s reported assets and GAAP earnings, but it would not fix weak revenue or guidance.
What Wall Street expects from Zoom
Wall Street expects Zoom to report:
-
Adjusted EPS: Approximately $1.48
-
Revenue: Approximately $1.27 billion
-
Expected revenue growth: About 4% from the same period last year
Zoom previously guided for quarterly revenue of $1.265 billion to $1.270 billion and adjusted EPS of $1.45 to $1.47.
Investors should also compare the new full-year forecast with Zoom’s previous guidance:
-
Full-year revenue: $5.08 billion to $5.09 billion
-
Full-year adjusted EPS: $5.96 to $6.00
Zoom is scheduled to discuss the results at 5:00 p.m. EDT on August 25. Zoom Investor Relations
Why adjusted EPS and GAAP EPS can tell different stories
This distinction is especially important for the upcoming report.
Adjusted EPS tries to show how Zoom’s main business performed. It removes certain expenses and gains that management does not consider part of normal operations.
GAAP EPS follows standard accounting rules. It can include gains or losses from Zoom’s investments in other companies.
Zoom excludes gains from strategic investments when calculating its adjusted earnings. This means a rise in the value of its Anthropic investment could make Zoom’s GAAP profit look much stronger without increasing its adjusted EPS.
Put simply:
-
Adjusted EPS tells us more about Zoom’s regular business.
-
GAAP EPS may also include changes in the value of its investments.
Investors should look at both numbers and understand what caused any large difference between them.
How Zoom’s Anthropic investment became so important
Zoom announced an investment and strategic partnership with Anthropic in 2023. The company did not disclose the exact size of that original investment, although analysts later estimated it at approximately $51 million.
Zoom then invested another $46 million in Anthropic during the quarter ending April 30, 2026.
According to Zoom’s SEC filing, its Anthropic preferred shares had a reported value of approximately $1.27 billion at the end of that quarter. That value was based on Anthropic’s February 2026 funding round. Zoom’s Q1 FY2027 SEC filing
This reported amount is known as the investment’s carrying value.
The carrying value is the amount Zoom shows in its financial accounts. It does not mean Zoom has already received that amount in cash. Anthropic is still a private company, so Zoom cannot necessarily sell all its shares immediately at the headline valuation.
Why Anthropic’s latest valuation could change the picture
Anthropic’s valuation has risen very quickly:
-
September 2025: Approximately $183 billion
-
February 2026: Approximately $380 billion
-
May 2026: Approximately $965 billion
The latest funding round happened during Zoom’s second fiscal quarter. That gives investors a reason to watch for a possible update to the value of Zoom’s investment. Reuters on Anthropic’s May financing
However, investors should not assume that Zoom’s investment automatically rose by the same percentage as Anthropic’s headline valuation.
Different funding rounds can include different types of shares. Some investors may receive better protections or other special rights. Zoom’s ownership can also be diluted when Anthropic issues new shares.
For these reasons, the actual value of Zoom’s position may be different from a simple calculation based on Anthropic’s total valuation.
Two ways Anthropic could help Zoom stock
1. Zoom’s investment may be worth more
If Zoom reports a higher value for its Anthropic shares, investors may begin valuing Zoom in separate pieces:
-
Zoom’s main software business
-
Its cash and marketable securities
-
Its Anthropic investment
-
Its other strategic investments
This approach can reveal value that is difficult to see when investors look only at Zoom’s total market capitalization.
A higher valuation could also produce a gain in Zoom’s GAAP results. However, this would mainly be an accounting gain unless Zoom sells part of the investment or Anthropic completes a public listing.
2. Anthropic strengthens Zoom’s AI story
Zoom’s relationship with Anthropic is not only a financial investment.
Zoom is also connecting information from meetings with Claude. This can allow users to take a meeting transcript, identify important decisions and use Claude to help complete the next steps. Zoom’s Claude integration
That supports Zoom’s effort to become more than a video-meeting application.
The larger opportunity is to help businesses turn conversations into completed work, such as summaries, customer follow-ups, task management and contact-center support.
What matters most in Zoom’s actual business?
The Anthropic investment is interesting, but Zoom’s regular business should still have the greatest influence on the longer-term stock reaction.
Here are the main areas to watch:
Enterprise revenue
Zoom’s enterprise revenue grew 7.2% in the previous quarter. Investors will want to see whether this growth continued or accelerated.
Existing customer spending
Zoom’s enterprise net dollar expansion rate improved to 99% last quarter.
A rate below 100% means existing enterprise customers are still spending slightly less than they did one year earlier. Moving above 100% would indicate that upgrades and additional products are finally becoming larger than customer reductions.
Paid AI adoption
Paid users of Zoom AI Companion increased 184% from a year earlier in the previous quarter.
The important question is whether AI is helping Zoom generate more revenue, win larger customers and keep existing customers for longer.
Zoom Phone and Contact Center
Zoom is expanding beyond meetings into business phone systems and customer-service software.
Continued growth in these products would support the argument that Zoom is successfully becoming a broader business platform.
Full-year guidance
Guidance tells investors what management expects in the coming quarters.
A small earnings beat accompanied by stronger full-year guidance would normally carry more weight than a large accounting gain from an investment.
Zoom reported $1.239 billion in revenue and $500.5 million in free cash flow in its previous quarter. Zoom’s Q1 FY2027 results
How could Zoom stock react?
Strongest bullish scenario
Zoom beats revenue expectations, raises its full-year outlook and reports continued growth in enterprise and paid AI products.
If this is combined with a higher value for the Anthropic investment, investors would have two reasons to reconsider Zoom’s valuation.
Positive but less convincing scenario
Zoom reports results close to expectations but records a large investment gain or a higher Anthropic carrying value.
This could support the stock initially. However, the reaction may be less durable if the operating business is not improving.
A quality earnings beat without an Anthropic gain
Zoom beats expectations and raises guidance, but does not report a meaningful change in the Anthropic investment.
This could still be a positive result because it would show that Zoom’s core business is strengthening. Anthropic would remain a possible future bonus rather than the main reason to own the stock.
An accounting-driven earnings surprise
Zoom reports unusually high GAAP earnings because of investment gains, but adjusted earnings, revenue or guidance disappoint.
In this case, the headline profit may look impressive while the underlying business result is weaker. Investors should check what created the profit before reacting to the headline number.
Bearish scenario
Zoom misses revenue expectations, lowers guidance and shows weaker enterprise or AI adoption.
A higher Anthropic value might soften the disappointment, but it would probably be difficult for a private investment to fully offset concerns about Zoom’s main business.
What investors should take from the report
What stands out to me is that Zoom now has two separate stories.
The first is a profitable software company trying to grow beyond video meetings through AI, phone systems and contact-center products.
The second is an early Anthropic investment that may be worth substantially more than Zoom originally paid.
The best outcome would be evidence that both stories are improving at the same time. Stronger revenue, higher guidance and better AI adoption would support the core business. A higher Anthropic carrying value would then provide an additional benefit.
If the main earnings surprise comes only from an investment gain, investors should be more careful. A higher paper value can help Zoom’s balance sheet, but it cannot replace sustainable customer and revenue growth.
This is not a forecast and not advice to buy or sell ZM stock before or after earnings, and is intended for edcucation purposes only.
This article was written by Itai Levitan at investinglive.com.