Backlog in defense, remaining performance obligations in software — one measure under two names

1One concept under two names

This site also covers quarterly reports from defense companies, where backlog is expressly stated to be equivalent to remaining performance obligations at the end of each period. The two are the same accounting concept. Only the name and the way it is subdivided change with the industry, while the substance — amounts under contract not yet recognized as revenue — is shared.

2The figures here

Remaining performance obligations grew 38 percent against 34 percent for product revenue, so contracts are accumulating ahead of revenue recognition. When backlog or remaining performance obligations outpace revenue, the support for future revenue is thickening. Where revenue alone runs ahead, a ceiling eventually comes into view.

3The net revenue retention rate

The release states a net revenue retention rate of 126 percent, showing how much more existing customers paid than a year earlier. Above 100 percent means spending by existing customers grew by more than churn removed. It measures expansion within the installed base, separately from winning new customers.

4How customers are counted

Customers are presented in bands — those above $1 million, those in the Forbes Global 2000. A revenue total alone cannot show whether a business rests on a few large accounts or a broad base. This site also covers filings that disclose customer concentration as a percentage, a different answer to the same question.