Zacks Research Upgrades Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) to “Strong-Buy”

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on CRM. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Salesforce from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. CLSA started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, July 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.98.

Salesforce Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of CRM opened at $227.22 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $187.00 billion, a PE ratio of 20.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a fifty day moving average of $239.96 and a 200 day moving average of $198.69. Salesforce has a 52-week low of $146.32 and a 52-week high of $269.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The CRM provider reported $5.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $2.63. Salesforce had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 24.90%. The company had revenue of $11.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.91 earnings per share. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue 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. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce will post 12.82 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Blair Kirk purchased 4,176 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $239.33 per share, for a total transaction of $999,442.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 18,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,486,958.84. This trade represents a 28.66% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Craig Conway sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.61, for a total transaction of $1,172,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,437 shares in the company, valued at $1,416,936.57. This represents a 45.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 626 Financial LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. 626 Financial LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $353,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its position in Salesforce by 24.7% during the 3rd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 33,676 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $7,731,000 after acquiring an additional 6,662 shares in the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 171.2% in the 3rd quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 5,142 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,181,000 after acquiring an additional 3,246 shares during the period. Cassia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,226,000. Finally, D Orazio & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter valued at $336,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded Salesforce to Rank #1, or “Strong Buy,” citing improving earnings prospects. Zacks upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: A historical review notes that after Salesforce shares previously fell at least 50% from a record high, they rose about 63% and 44% in the following years. Past performance does not guarantee a repeat. Historical performance analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Salesforce agreed to acquire AI startup Cresta for about $2.7 billion, its fifth major acquisition this year. The deal could expand its AI capabilities, though the pace of acquisitions raises questions about integration. Cresta acquisition announcement
• Negative Sentiment: S&P Global Ratings cut Salesforce’s credit rating to “A” from “A+,” citing acquisition spending and a $25 billion debt-financed share repurchase program. The agency said pro forma net debt-to-EBITDA exceeded its prior 2x downgrade threshold, highlighting increased financial risk. S&P rating downgrade report
• Negative Sentiment: ETFs were net sellers of $15.2 million in Salesforce shares on Nov. 2, a modest potential source of selling pressure. ETF flows report

About Salesforce

Salesforce, Inc (NYSE: CRM) is a global enterprise software company that provides cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) technology. Its platform helps organizations manage sales, customer service, marketing, commerce, data, analytics and interactions with customers across digital and traditional channels.

The company’s products include Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud and Data Cloud. Salesforce also offers Tableau for data visualization and analytics, MuleSoft for application integration, and Slack for workplace collaboration.