Salesforce Inc. $CRM Stock: Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. Grows Stake

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors increased its Salesforce stake by 8,185.8% in the third quarter, owning 116,830 shares valued at approximately $26.8 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 80.43% of Salesforce.
• Salesforce reported quarterly revenue of $11.35 billion, up 10.8% year over year, and earnings of $5.90 per share, exceeding analyst estimates. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, yielding about 0.7% annually.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Salesforce carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $278.98. However, investors remain focused on the risks and potential benefits of Salesforce’s proposed $5.66 billion Braze acquisition, including AI growth, integration costs and the deal’s premium valuation.

Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. boosted its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 8,185.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 116,830 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 115,420 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises about 1.2% of Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $26,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.7% during the third quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV now owns 6,422 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,474,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 3,396 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,098 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,445,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Paragon Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Salesforce by 1.0% in the third quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,714 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,312,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $375,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM opened at $241.77 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $198.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $234.26 and a 200 day moving average of $196.07. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $146.32 and a 12 month high of $269.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The CRM provider reported $5.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by $2.63. Salesforce had a return on equity of 24.90% and a net margin of 21.99%. The business had revenue of $11.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.91 earnings per share. Salesforce's quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 16.670-16.710 EPS and its Q3 2027 guidance at 3.420-3.440 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 12.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 17th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 17th. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 16.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CRM shares. Susquehanna initiated coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $278.98.

Trending Headlines about Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce agreed to acquire Braze for $47.50 per share in cash, a roughly 58% premium. Braze’s real-time customer data and engagement technology could strengthen Salesforce’s Marketing Cloud and provide infrastructure for its Agentforce artificial-intelligence platform. The transaction is expected to close in fiscal 2028, subject to regulatory review. Salesforce Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Braze
• Positive Sentiment: UBS called the deal a solid strategic fit at a reasonable price, while Jefferies said it could improve Salesforce’s marketing capabilities and encourage broader consolidation across the software industry. The acquisition may allow Salesforce to add capabilities faster than building comparable real-time data infrastructure internally. Salesforce's Braze deal wins UBS backing on strategy, but growth concerns remain
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed its “overweight” rating and set a $300 price target, implying substantial upside from recent trading levels. Other recent commentary highlighted Salesforce’s strong cash generation, approximately 22% net margin, active buyback program and improving AI- and data-related growth prospects.
• Neutral Sentiment: Salesforce has significantly outperformed the broader market over the past six months, and valuation-focused research from Zacks describes CRM as a highly ranked value stock. However, comparisons with Oracle and Autodesk indicate that investors are still assessing which software companies offer the best combination of growth and valuation. Salesforce is a Top-Ranked Value Stock
• Negative Sentiment: The immediate market reaction has been negative because Salesforce is paying a large premium for a target that remains unprofitable, while committing significant cash to another major acquisition following its Informatica and Loops investments. Investors are concerned about integration costs, overlapping operations, antitrust scrutiny and the risk that the deal distracts from organic growth.
• Negative Sentiment: UBS also warned that the Braze transaction could renew questions about Salesforce’s ability to generate faster organic growth. The stock’s direction will likely depend on whether management can retain Braze’s customers, integrate its technology and convert the combined platform into accelerating revenue and Agentforce adoption.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, Director Craig Conway sold 4,500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.61, for a total value of $1,172,745.00. Following the sale, the director owned 5,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,416,936.57. The trade was a 45.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David Blair Kirk bought 4,176 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $239.33 per share, for a total transaction of $999,442.08. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 18,748 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,486,958.84. The trade was a 28.66% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 3.50% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Company Profile

Salesforce, Inc NYSE: CRM is a global enterprise software company that provides cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) technology. Its platform helps organizations manage sales, customer service, marketing, commerce, data, analytics and interactions with customers across digital and traditional channels.

The company's products include Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud and Data Cloud. Salesforce also offers Tableau for data visualization and analytics, MuleSoft for application integration, and Slack for workplace collaboration.

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