Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading 22.6% Higher Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price was up 22.6% during trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $254.48 and last traded at $252.1480. 55,342,689 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 298% from the average session volume of 13,904,954 shares. The stock had previously closed at $205.62.

The CRM provider reported $5.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $2.63. Salesforce had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 18.73%.The company had revenue of $11.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.91 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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.

Salesforce News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Results exceeded expectations: Salesforce reported adjusted EPS of $5.90 versus the $3.27 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 10.8% year over year to $11.35 billion, broadly ahead of forecasts. Profit was also helped by a roughly $2.6 billion gain on strategic investments, including the company’s Anthropic stake. Salesforce stock jumps on AI growth and Anthropic investment gain
• Positive Sentiment: Raised guidance supports the rally: Salesforce lifted fiscal 2027 revenue guidance to $46.1 billion-$46.4 billion and EPS guidance to $16.67-$16.71. Third-quarter EPS guidance of $3.42-$3.44 also topped the $3.16 analyst estimate, signaling confidence in continued growth. Salesforce raises annual revenue forecasts on AI product momentum
• Positive Sentiment: AI momentum is easing disruption fears: Current remaining performance obligations accelerated 14% in constant currency, while Agentforce and Data 360 annual recurring revenue approached $3.9 billion. Management said AI usage has surged, strengthening the argument that AI agents can expand Salesforce’s platform rather than replace it. Salesforce Q2 results and the SaaSpocalypse bear case
• Positive Sentiment: Anthropic partnership adds strategic momentum: The new “Claudeforce” integration brings Anthropic’s Claude into Salesforce workflows, data and Agentforce, giving investors a clearer path to monetize enterprise AI. Salesforce and Anthropic announce Claudeforce
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reaction is favorable but not unanimous: JPMorgan and Mizuho raised their targets to $265 with bullish ratings, while Truist set $300 and Needham maintained a $400 target. However, UBS, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo kept neutral-equivalent ratings with targets below the current trading level; Bernstein raised its target to $195 but retained an underperform rating.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and platform risks remain: Some analysts argue the rally may be a temporary rebound after a prolonged decline. Salesforce is again valued above its one-year average, and Anthropic’s control of the AI orchestration layer could limit Salesforce’s long-term strategic leverage. Salesforce dead cat bounce analysis

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Daiwa Securities Group lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $295.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Citizens Jmp restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $275.00 price objective (up from $250.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $261.15.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 13,260.5% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 188,085,056 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,465,405,000 after buying an additional 186,677,290 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth $11,396,844,000. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 50,080,230 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $13,286,909,000 after purchasing an additional 659,573 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 24,056.7% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 47,385,511 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $12,552,896,000 after purchasing an additional 47,189,352 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 22,721,010 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,019,199,000 after purchasing an additional 2,669,891 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $177.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $181.60. The firm has a market cap of $206.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

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.