Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 8.4% After Dividend Announcement

Key Points

• Salesforce shares jumped 8.4% after the company announced a quarterly dividend, with the stock trading on much heavier volume than usual. The dividend is $0.44 per share, payable July 2 to shareholders of record on June 11.
• Despite the rally, analysts remain mixed but generally constructive: the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with a $259.47 average price target. Several firms recently trimmed targets, reflecting some caution around near-term expectations.
• Salesforce’s latest quarter showed solid operational performance, with EPS of $3.88 beating estimates and revenue rising 13.3% year over year to $11.13 billion. The company also highlighted strong AI traction, including Agentforce ARR passing $1 billion.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 8.4% during mid-day trading on Friday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $194.14 and last traded at $190.9990. 33,691,516 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 155% from the average session volume of 13,222,278 shares. The stock had previously closed at $176.17.The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $265.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Salesforce from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. B. Riley Financial boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $205.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $259.47.

Salesforce Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $156.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.11, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $210.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The CRM provider reported $3.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $0.75. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.05 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 16.70% and a net margin of 18.73%.The company's revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.58 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.060-14.120 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 3.250-3.270 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 9.72 earnings per share for the current year.

More Salesforce News

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce delivered strong fiscal Q1 results, with revenue up 13% year over year to $11.13 billion and EPS of $3.88 topping estimates, while Agentforce ARR passed $1 billion. CRM Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y on ARR Milestone
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised FY2027 guidance and announced a $25 billion accelerated share repurchase, signaling confidence in earnings power and a strong return of capital to shareholders. Salesforce raises FY 2027 revenue guide...
• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, adding another capital-return tailwind for income-focused investors. Salesforce Announces Quarterly Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remain constructive, with firms like Wedbush, Piper Sandler, Cantor Fitzgerald, and others keeping bullish ratings and price targets above the current share price. Salesforce Q1 Results 'Uninspiring'...
• Neutral Sentiment: Salesforce said its AI tools, especially Agentforce, are gaining traction, and it expanded a collaboration with CVS Health to use Agentforce Health in call centers. CVS Health to Deliver Faster...
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option buying suggests traders are positioning for a move higher, but it does not confirm a fundamental shift by itself.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were disappointed that Q2 revenue guidance came in slightly below expectations, reinforcing concerns that growth is not accelerating as quickly as hoped. Salesforce Stock Slips as Earnings Top Estimates but Outlook Disappoints
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts warned that Salesforce still faces an “AI threat” narrative, arguing that the company has yet to fully prove its AI strategy will offset disruption risks to its core software model. Analyst warns Salesforce has an AI problem
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple brokerages trimmed price targets after the report, reflecting caution around valuation and the softer near-term outlook. Analyst price target updates

Salesforce declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, March 16th that permits the company to repurchase $25.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the CRM provider to reacquire up to 14.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Laura Alber purchased 2,571 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $194.58 per share, with a total value of $500,265.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,530 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,854,347.40. This trade represents a 36.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Blair Kirk acquired 2,570 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $194.62 per share, with a total value of $500,173.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 13,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,664,153.18. This represents a 23.11% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 3.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rockland Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 1,145.6% in the third quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 13,066 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,097,000 after purchasing an additional 12,017 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Salesforce by 98.3% during the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 21,455 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $5,085,000 after purchasing an additional 10,633 shares during the period. Midwest Trust Co grew its stake in Salesforce by 2.3% during the third quarter. Midwest Trust Co now owns 187,071 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $44,336,000 after buying an additional 4,233 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Salesforce by 15.1% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 467,551 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $113,420,000 after buying an additional 61,270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 42.2% in the 3rd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 281,054 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $66,610,000 after buying an additional 83,403 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Salesforce

Salesforce, founded in 1999 and headquartered in San Francisco, is a global provider of cloud-based software focused on customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise applications. The company popularized the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model for CRM and has built a broad portfolio of products designed to help organizations manage sales, service, marketing, commerce and analytics through a unified, cloud-first platform.

Core offerings include Sales Cloud for sales automation, Service Cloud for customer support, Marketing Cloud for digital marketing and engagement, and Commerce Cloud for e-commerce.

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