Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.03 EPS

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03, RTT News reports. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.44 EPS. Salesforce's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce updated its FY 2026 guidance to 11.270-11.330 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance to 2.760-2.780 EPS.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock traded down $1.89 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $265.03. 12,373,506 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,790,605. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $267.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $304.75. Salesforce has a fifty-two week low of $216.06 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The stock has a market cap of $254.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This is an increase from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.63%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total transaction of $1,725,518.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,967,047.50. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total value of $543,263.22. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,310 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,218,599.80. This represents a 14.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 46,553 shares of company stock valued at $12,897,323 in the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 25,668 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $8,582,000 after buying an additional 3,102 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $611,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Finally, Bison Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $747,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CRM shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Salesforce from $367.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $404.00 target price (up from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $343.32.

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.