Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) reported fiscal third-quarter 2026 results on Tuesday that showed the company's bet on going direct is paying off. Direct sales jumped 85% compared to the prior year, fueled by stronger-than-expected performance from its online store and growing adoption of its new transaction model.

Everything Going According to Plan

When asked whether the revenue figures lined up with internal projections, CFO Janesh Moorjani had a pretty straightforward answer: "I'd say in Q3, things were as we expected they would be."

The jump in direct revenue wasn't a surprise to management. Moorjani explained that the company anticipated the mix would shift as its new transaction model continued to scale, and that's essentially what happened. The shift toward direct sales changes how Autodesk's financials look on paper, which is why the company provides underlying metrics to help investors see through the noise.

What's interesting is that the online store has shown sustained strength for multiple reasons. Yes, some customers are moving away from resellers, but there's also solid demand coming from international markets where the new transaction model hasn't even launched yet. According to Moorjani, the momentum appears "broader-based" than a simple channel shift would suggest.

Beating Expectations Across the Board

Autodesk reported third-quarter revenue of $1.85 billion, marking an 18% increase from a year earlier and topping the $1.81 billion analysts were expecting.

The company also posted adjusted earnings of $2.67 per share, comfortably beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 per share.

Investors liked what they saw. Autodesk shares closed at $294.43 on Tuesday, up 1.58%, then climbed another 6.14% to $312.50 in after-hours trading as the results landed.