Northland Securities Downgrades Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) to Market Perform

Key Points

• Northland Securities has downgraded Salesforce from an "outperform" rating to "market perform," setting a target price of $264, indicating a potential upside of 6.12% from its current price.
• Salesforce has reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.91, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.78, with revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter.
• Despite the downgrade, 25 analysts have rated Salesforce as a Buy, maintaining an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $328.22.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Northland Securities from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. They presently have a $264.00 target price on the CRM provider's stock. Northland Securities' target price suggests a potential upside of 6.12% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. DA Davidson raised shares of Salesforce from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $335.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $365.00 to $325.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Twenty-five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $328.22.

Salesforce Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $248.77 on Tuesday. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $226.48 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The stock has a market cap of $236.83 billion, a PE ratio of 36.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a 50-day moving average of $244.61 and a 200 day moving average of $258.49.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The business had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.56 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.79, for a total transaction of $539,527.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,856,275,610.09. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 76,500 shares of company stock worth $19,049,130. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Painted Porch Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 260.0% in the 2nd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 90 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 450.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 314.8% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Salesforce

Salesforce, Inc provides Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technology that brings companies and customers together worldwide. The company's service includes sales to store data, monitor leads and progress, forecast opportunities, gain insights through analytics and artificial intelligence, and deliver quotes, contracts, and invoices; and service that enables companies to deliver trusted and highly personalized customer support at scale.

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