Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Up 1.5% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Expanded Google Cloud partnership and strong internal AI metrics, plus a shift to usage‑based Agentforce pricing, position AI as a potential revenue accelerator for Salesforce while also attracting investor interest and competitive/valuation scrutiny.
• Salesforce beat quarterly EPS ($3.81 vs. $3.05 est.) with revenue of $11.20B (+12.1% YoY) and set FY2027 EPS guidance of 13.110–13.190 and Q1 2027 guidance of 3.110–3.130.
• Management authorized a $25 billion stock buyback (up to 14.1% of shares), raised the quarterly dividend to $0.44, and insiders made share purchases, signaling confidence in the stock.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 1.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $191.15 and last traded at $189.9070. Approximately 13,231,781 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 2% from the average daily volume of 13,023,235 shares. The stock had previously closed at $187.11.

More Salesforce News

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Expanded Google Cloud partnership to let AI agents operate across Salesforce and Google ecosystems, reducing data fragmentation and enabling end‑to‑end workflows — a clear enterprise sales catalyst. Salesforce and Google Cloud Enable AI Agents to Act Across Both Platforms
• Positive Sentiment: Strong internal AI metrics and a shift to usage‑based Agentforce pricing — Agentforce ARR growth and accelerating agentic actions — supporting forecasts that AI is driving revenue acceleration rather than mere rebranding. Salesforce: AI Is A True Acceleration Driver, Not A Hollow Rebrand
• Positive Sentiment: High‑profile investor Michael Burry is building a position in software names including Salesforce, which can signal value hunting by long‑term investors. Michael Burry plans to buy Salesforce stock for crucial reason
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst support and momentum scores underline investor interest (Truist reiterated Buy; Zacks highlights CRM as a momentum/style fit), which can sustain multiple expansion if execution continues. Is Salesforce (CRM) One of the Best Large Cap Stocks to Buy Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Product upgrades to Agent Fabric add governance, multi‑vendor model discovery and workflow controls — improves enterprise appeal but is more execution/upgrade risk than immediate revenue. Salesforce Pushes Deeper Into Enterprise AI Control With Agent Fabric Upgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Investor letters and activist/value managers cited AI disruption fears that pressured sentiment and contributed to prior weakness — a reminder that AI can both create opportunity and threaten seat‑based SaaS revenue. AI Disruption Fears Pressured Salesforce (CRM) in Q1
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive comparisons and valuation debates (analysts favor Adobe in some AI metrics/earnings outlooks) and commentary about the stock’s YTD drop keep downside risk if AI monetization or margins disappoint. Salesforce vs. Adobe: Which AI-Driven Software Stock Has an Edge?
• Negative Sentiment: Headline narratives about a sharp YTD decline and “SaaSpocalypse” worries amplify sentiment risk and could cap rebounds absent clear, sustained revenue/usage proof. Salesforce (CRM) Stock Plunges 30% YTD as AI Threatens Traditional SaaS Revenue Model

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho dropped their price target 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. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $279.18.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $187.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $223.21. The company has a market capitalization of $155.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The CRM provider reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.76. Salesforce had a net margin of 17.96% and a return on equity of 15.38%. The company had revenue of $11.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.78 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 13.110-13.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.110-3.130 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 9.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 9th. This is an increase from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.54%.

Salesforce declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the CRM provider to repurchase up to 14.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Laura Alber bought 2,571 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $194.58 per share, for a total transaction of $500,265.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,530 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,854,347.40. This represents a 36.94% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Blair Kirk bought 2,570 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $194.62 per share, for a total transaction of $500,173.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 13,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,664,153.18. This trade represents a 23.11% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1,145.6% during the third quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 13,066 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,097,000 after buying an additional 12,017 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 98.3% during the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 21,455 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $5,085,000 after buying an additional 10,633 shares during the period. Midwest Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2.3% during the third quarter. Midwest Trust Co now owns 187,071 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $44,336,000 after buying an additional 4,233 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 15.1% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 467,551 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $113,420,000 after buying an additional 61,270 shares during the period. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 42.2% during the third 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.

Salesforce Company Profile

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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