Navan Stock Surges on Earnings. Even the Travel Company Has AI to Thank

Shares of Navan (NAVN) rallied 8.43% on Thursday, June 11, following its Q1 FY2027 results, as investors backed its deeper artificial intelligence (AI) push and enterprise traction. The momentum drove the stock to a new 52-week high of $24.50, fueled by stronger-than-expected earnings that kept buyers in control.

At the heart of the update stood Navan Anywhere, a new offering that embeds the company’s AI travel agents directly into Alphabet’s (GOOG) (GOOGL) Gemini Enterprise, pushing the firm deeper into the enterprise software ecosystem. 

And the AI bet is already paying off. Usage of Navan’s proprietary AI model climbed from 20% to 30% in just a few weeks. Management pointed to this jump as proof that AI now drives real growth and operational efficiency rather than sitting on the sidelines as a decorative feature.

Momentum also rolled into the enterprise pipeline. President Michael Sindicich noted that request for proposal (RFP) volume jumped more than 200% year-over-year (YOY). The number of Fortune 500 companies using the platform rose to 45 from 28 a year earlier, signaling stronger trust from large enterprises in Navan’s AI-driven approach.

Investors took the hint and started revising their price targets upward, betting that this AI momentum has legs for both customer growth and fatter margins down the road.

About Navan Stock 

Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, Navan runs an AI-powered platform that brings travel and expense management under one roof. With a market cap sitting close to $5 billion, the company handles everything from booking and policy enforcement to payments, expense reconciliation, and reporting, smoothing out the entire travel journey.

The stock has shown strong momentum, climbing 18.74% year-to-date (YTD), while the near-term trend has gathered even more speed with a 127.9% jump over the past three months and a further 9.9% rise over the past month. 

On the valuation front, NAVN stock is currently trading at 78.92 times forward adjusted earnings and 5.56 times sales, sitting above broader industry averages and reflecting a premium market stance.

Navan Surpasses Q1 Earnings

Navan opened FY2027 with a strong first quarter performance. Results released on June 10 showed revenue surged 39.9% YOY to $220.2 million, beating analyst expectations of $205 million. Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.08, ahead of Wall Street estimates of $0.01. 

Fueling that growth was a 50% YOY jump in Gross Booking Volume, which crossed the $3 billion mark for the first time. The strength came from rock-solid on-platform booking activity, strong ramps from new customers, and payments volume that's expanding at a rapid clip. 

This growth allowed the company to deliver meaningful gross and operating margin expansion. Non-GAAP income from operations grew 783.2% from the year-ago figure to $23.6 million, while non-GAAP net income landed at $21.6 million, a turnaround from a non-GAAP net loss of $7 million in the same period last year.

The balance sheet looked healthy too, with $681 million sitting in cash and short-term investments at the end of the quarter.

Looking ahead, for Q2 FY2027, Navan's management expects total revenue between $219 million and $221 million, representing YOY growth of 28% at the midpoint. They're also projecting non-GAAP income from operations of $13.5 million to $14.5 million and a non-GAAP operating margin of 6% at the midpoint.

For the full FY2027, Navan raised its outlook to total revenue between $907 million and $913 million, representing YOY growth of 30% at the midpoint, along with non-GAAP income from operations of $76 million to $80 million and a non-GAAP operating margin of 9% at the midpoint.

Analysts currently expect the Q2 FY2027 loss per share to widen 100% YOY to $0.09. However, the full-year FY2027 loss per share is projected to narrow 82.2% YOY to $0.33, and for FY2028 the loss per share is expected to narrow further, by 48.5%, to $0.17.

What Do Analysts Expect for Navan Stock?

Morgan Stanley raised its price target on NAVN to $33 from $25 and kept an “Overweight” rating on the shares. Despite already high expectations going in, Navan delivered a quarter that beat them, with the analyst calling it one of the strongest Q1 results across their entire software coverage group.

Wall Street as a whole has assigned a "Strong Buy" rating on Navan. Among 15 analysts covering its stock, 13 say "Strong Buy," one suggests "Moderate Buy," and one recommends "Hold." 

To that end, the stock’s average price target of $27.31 represents potential upside of 34.8%. Meanwhile, the Street-High target of $38 suggests a gain of 87.6% from current levels.