What happened

Shares of Nutanix (NTNX 3.18%) jumped on Friday, up 10.4% by the close. There was no company-specific news for the cloud software company, so it's not clear what exactly drove the stock higher.

So what

Shares of Nutanix have tumbled since peaking back in 2018, down more than 50% from their all-time high. The company has been transitioning to a subscription business model, which is putting pressure on sales and profits as revenue is recognized over time instead of up front.

A cloud.

Image source: Getty Images.

During the fiscal fourth quarter, Nutanix reported a slight decline in revenue and a substantially larger adjusted net loss from the prior-year period. However, these results were better than analysts expected, kicking off a recovery for the stock.

That recovery continued Friday, although there was no clear driver behind the rally.

Now what

Revenue will eventually start moving in the right direction as Nutanix laps its shift to subscriptions. How strong that growth will be remains to be seen, but it seems that investors have become a bit more optimistic in recent months.