How healthy is the MSP market, and where is the managed services industry heading next -- especially in terms of cybersecurity? Answers to those questions are emerging this week amid quarterly earnings results from N-able and Datto. Moreover, ConnectWise today is set to kick off the IT Nation Connect 2021 conference in Orlando, Florida.
First up, N-able announced Q3 2021 financial results on Tuesday, November 9. Among the key performance indicators (KPIs) to note:
- N-able now has 1,662 MSP partners that spend at least $50,000 with the software company, which represents a 25 percent year-over-year increase. Moreover, those 1,662 MSPs now represent 46 percent of N-able's total ARR (annual recurring revenue), up from 40 percent a year ago, CFO Tim O'Brien indicated.
- Also, N-able's net retention rate remains consistent at 110% on a trailing 12-month basis, CEO John Pagliuca said. The figure suggests (A) MSPs are healthy and (B) generally remain loyal to N-able amid the platform battles vs. ConnectWise, Datto, Kaseya, NinjaOne and multiple MSP software upstarts.
N-able Financial Results, Managed Security Market Focus
On the financial front for Q3 of 2021, N-able disclosed:
- Total revenue of $88.4 million, up 16% compared to Q3 of 2020.
- GAAP net income of $1.9 million, compared to a $1.1 million loss in Q3 of 2020.
The figures generally exceeded Wall Street's expectations.
In terms of overall market trends, N-able sees MSP market growth combined with M&A-driven consolidation, Pagliuca said. "We are seeing some smart money come into the space," Pagliuca added, apparently in a nod to private equity firms and some venture capital firms that now back MSPs.
Meanwhile, N-able continues to ramp its security offerings in a way that "really lends itself to these bigger, more mature MSPs," Pagliuca said. "As the market matures, as these MSPs continue to grow in both size and maturity our platform, and frankly our strategy, I think positions us to continue to win in that area."
Datto Earnings, ConnectWise IT Nation Kicks Off
Next up, Datto announced quarterly financial results after U.S. markets closed today (Wednesday, November 10). Shortly thereafter, rival ConnectWise at 5:00 p.m. ET kicked off its keynotes at IT Nation Connect in Orlando.
Datto's revenue was $157.9 million in Q3 of 2021, up 21 percent from $130.7 million in Q3 of 2020. The company now supports 18,000 MSPs. "Looking ahead, I’m as optimistic as ever about the large opportunity in front of us to empower our MSP partners to help their SMB clients thrive in an increasingly complex IT world," CEO Tim Weller said in a statement.
Datto has been extending from its applianced-based backup and disaster recovery (BDR) heritage to a new Datto Connectivity for Microsoft Azure platform designed for MSPs.
Meanwhile, ConnectWise has been preparing to simplify and focus its business around MSP software, services and community. The effort includes a major RMM (remote monitoring and management) update, while also leveraging the software platform architecture from the Continuum acquisition of 2019. Check our IT Nation Connect coverage here.
Bottom line: The overall MSP market appears healthy.
