Executive Summary / Key Takeaways

• Rimini Street (NASDAQ:RMNI) is emerging from a prolonged litigation period with Oracle , marked by a favorable settlement in July 2025, which is expected to remove a significant historical headwind and unlock new growth opportunities.
• The company is strategically repositioning itself as a "software support and agentic AI ERP company," leveraging its Rimini SmartPath methodology to help clients extend the life of existing ERP systems while integrating next-generation AI and automation solutions.
• Recent financial performance indicates a turnaround, with Q3 2025 adjusted billings (excluding PeopleSoft) up 6.7% year-over-year and record remaining performance obligations (RPO) of $611.2 million, signaling a return to top-line growth despite the planned wind-down of Oracle PeopleSoft services.
• Key technological differentiators, including its agentic AI ERP solutions with ServiceNow and bundled advanced hypervisor security for VMware, are expanding its competitive moat by offering significant cost savings and enabling innovation within existing IT budgets.
• Strategic partnerships and an expanded go-to-market strategy, including a new U.S. federal sales team and GSA schedule approval, are expected to drive accretive sales and enhance profitability, with formal guidance anticipated by the Analyst and Investor Day on December 3, 2025.

A New Chapter in Enterprise Software: Rimini Street's Strategic Evolution

Rimini Street, Inc. (NASDAQ:RMNI) stands at a pivotal juncture, transforming from a specialized third-party software support provider into a comprehensive partner for enterprise IT. Founded in 2005, the company has carved a unique niche by offering an alternative to traditional vendor support for critical enterprise software like Oracle , SAP , and VMware. Its core value proposition, encapsulated in the "Rimini SmartPath" methodology, centers on helping clients extend the useful life of their existing ERP and other enterprise software, thereby avoiding costly and often unnecessary upgrades. The savings generated are then reinvested to fund innovation, including advanced AI, workflow, and automation solutions, all within existing IT budgets. This approach positions Rimini Street as "the software support and agentic AI ERP company," a strategic alignment that resonates deeply in a global economy marked by instability and a pressing need for cost efficiency and agile innovation.

The enterprise software support market is a substantial component of global IT spending, characterized by complex, hybrid IT environments. Organizations grapple with escalating costs associated with maintaining, securing, and ensuring compliance for these mission-critical systems. Rimini Street's differentiated technology directly addresses these challenges. Its core offering provides ultra-responsive support, boasting a 10-minute response time for high-priority issues, and typically offers services at approximately 50% of the original software vendor's annual fees, or 25% for supplemental support. This cost leadership is a significant competitive advantage, allowing clients to realize substantial savings—nearly $10 billion to date—which can then be channeled into strategic projects.

Technological innovation is central to Rimini Street's evolving strategy. The company has developed "agentic AI ERP solutions" in partnership with ServiceNow , designed to layer AI, workflow, automation, and a "single pane of glass" data view over existing ERP systems without requiring disruptive upgrades or migrations. For instance, initial projects, such as with Brazilian pharmaceutical manufacturer Apsen Farma, have demonstrated the ability to automate 70% of previously manual processes and reduce development cycles from months to weeks. While the material monetization of these AI solutions is anticipated in 2026, 26 client engagements were closed in Q3 2025, establishing critical use cases. Furthermore, Rimini Street's support for VMware, which has surpassed 100 contracts, includes a bundled advanced hypervisor security solution, providing a "tremendous competitive advantage" in the virtualization space. These technological advancements not only enhance Rimini Street's competitive moat by offering superior value and functionality but also directly contribute to its financial performance by attracting new clients and expanding service offerings.

Competitive Landscape and Strategic Positioning

Rimini Street operates in a highly competitive arena, facing direct challenges from the original software vendors—Oracle and SAP —as well as other IT service providers like Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) through its Spinnaker Support acquisition, and global consulting giant Accenture .

Oracle and SAP, with their proprietary ecosystems and vast R&D budgets, represent formidable competitors. They offer integrated solutions and often push clients towards costly upgrades to newer versions or cloud platforms (e.g., SAP S/4HANA RISE). Rimini Street directly counters this by offering extended support for legacy systems, allowing clients to defer or avoid these migrations, thereby exploiting the vendors' perceived inflexibility and high costs. Rimini Street's cost leadership and specialized expertise in maintaining older software versions provide a compelling alternative for clients prioritizing budget optimization and stability over forced upgrades.

Against broader IT service providers like HPE (HPE) and Accenture (ACN), Rimini Street differentiates itself through its deep specialization in software support. While Accenture offers extensive consulting and digital transformation services, its higher service costs and less specialized focus on pure software maintenance create an opening for Rimini Street's more streamlined and cost-effective approach. HPE, with its broader IT infrastructure focus, also presents a more generalized support offering compared to Rimini Street's targeted software expertise. Rimini Street's ability to deliver superior margins through efficient, specialized service delivery and foster strong customer loyalty in its niche is a key competitive advantage. However, Rimini Street's reliance on a few major software vendors and potential technological gaps in rapidly evolving areas like native AI integrations (compared to vendor-native solutions) remain vulnerabilities. The company mitigates these by forming strategic partnerships, such as with ServiceNow , to integrate cutting-edge AI capabilities externally.

Barriers to entry in this industry, including high expertise requirements, established client relationships, and regulatory complexities, help Rimini Street defend its market position. The company's recent approval for the U.S. GSA Multiple Award Schedule for Oracle (ORCL), SAP (SAP), and VMware support and security services, coupled with the launch of a dedicated U.S. federal sales team, opens access to a "billions of dollars" opportunity in the public sector, further solidifying its competitive standing.

Financial Performance and Operational Momentum

Rimini Street's financial narrative in 2025 reflects a business in transition, marked by the strategic wind-down of its Oracle PeopleSoft services and a concerted effort to reaccelerate growth and improve profitability. For the third quarter ended September 30, 2025, total revenue was $103.4 million, a slight year-over-year decrease of 1.2%. However, excluding the impact of PeopleSoft-related revenue, which is being phased out, revenue increased by a more encouraging 2.5% year-over-year. International revenue demonstrated robust growth, climbing 8% for the quarter, while U.S. revenue saw a 10% decline.

The company's annualized recurring revenue (ARR) stood at $391 million, a 2.6% year-over-year decrease, primarily due to the PeopleSoft wind-down. Despite this, the revenue retention rate for service subscriptions, which constitute 95% of total revenue, remained solid at 89% for the 12 months ended September 30, 2025. Critically, the company's remaining performance obligations (RPO), a key indicator of future revenue, reached a record $611.2 million, up 6.4% year-over-year. Excluding PeopleSoft, RPO expanded by an impressive 9.3%, underscoring the underlying strength and momentum in its core business.

Operational efficiency is a central theme. Gross profit margin for Q3 2025 was 59.9% (GAAP) and 60.4% (non-GAAP), a slight decline attributed to the changing revenue mix as PeopleSoft services diminish. However, management emphasizes a continuous focus on driving operational leverage through improved systems, processes, and global staffing models. The company's cost optimization plan, initiated in Q2 2024, resulted in $24.3 million in net annualized cost reductions by Q1 2025. While reorganization costs, primarily severance, totaled $0.8 million in Q3 2025, these are part of a strategic effort to streamline operations and reallocate resources to growth areas.

Cash flow generation saw a significant boost in Q3 2025, with operating cash flow increasing by $24.7 million, positively impacted by the receipt of $37.9 million from the Oracle litigation settlement. This influx of cash, combined with $109.9 million in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash as of September 30, 2025, provides ample liquidity. The company's 2024 Credit Facility, with $35 million in available borrowing capacity, further strengthens its financial position, and it remains in compliance with all financial covenants.

Strategic Initiatives and Outlook

Rimini Street's strategic initiatives are designed to capitalize on its core strengths and emerging market opportunities. The resolution of the Oracle litigation in July 2025, which included the return of $37.9 million in attorney's fees, removes a significant "blocker" that previously deterred potential clients and partners. This newfound clarity is expected to accelerate sales cycles and open new avenues for growth.

The company's focus on its three service pillars—Support, Optimize, and Innovate—is gaining traction. The partnership with ServiceNow (NOW) for agentic AI ERP solutions is a cornerstone of the Innovate pillar, with 26 client engagements already underway. These solutions, which layer AI and automation over existing ERP systems, are expected to be a material revenue driver by 2026. The rapid adoption of VMware support, with over 100 contracts signed, further demonstrates the success of expanding its core support offerings.

Rimini Street is also aggressively expanding its go-to-market capabilities. The implementation of a "hunter-farmer" sales model in the Americas, coupled with investments in a global solution engineering team and new sales leadership, is designed to drive both new logo acquisition and cross-sales to existing clients. The approval for the U.S. GSA Multiple Award Schedule and partnerships with Merlin Cyber and American Digital are strategic moves to penetrate the lucrative government and hosting provider markets, respectively.

While formal forward-looking guidance remains suspended due to residual litigation-related uncertainties, management anticipates reinstating it at the upcoming Analyst and Investor Day on December 3, 2025. The company expresses confidence in being on the "upside of the U" in its growth trajectory, striving to become a "Rule of 40 company." The wind-down of PeopleSoft services by July 31, 2028, will create a revenue headwind (PeopleSoft revenue was 5% of total revenue in Q3 2025), but management is optimistic that growth from other areas will offset this, leading to overall positive revenue growth. Litigation costs are also expected to decrease substantially from historical levels, further benefiting profitability.

Conclusion

Rimini Street is charting a compelling course for growth, underpinned by the strategic resolution of its long-standing Oracle litigation and a clear vision for enterprise IT modernization. By leveraging its differentiated third-party support model to deliver significant cost savings and reinvesting those savings into cutting-edge AI and automation solutions, the company is uniquely positioned to address the evolving needs of global enterprises. The combination of strong operational execution, expanding strategic partnerships, and a robust pipeline of innovative offerings suggests a promising trajectory.

While the wind-down of PeopleSoft services presents a temporary revenue headwind, the accelerating growth in new client acquisitions, the expanding remaining performance obligations, and the strategic focus on high-growth areas like agentic AI ERP and VMware support are powerful tailwinds. Investors should closely monitor the company's progress in monetizing its AI solutions in 2026 and the impact of its expanded go-to-market strategies. With improved liquidity, a disciplined approach to cost management, and a clear path to enhanced profitability, Rimini Street appears poised for a new era of sustained growth and value creation in the dynamic enterprise software landscape.