Salesforce Stock Drops 2.2% Despite Strong Earnings and Analyst Optimism
Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) saw its shares dip by 2.2% during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching a low of $227.81 before closing at $229.62. The trading volume was significantly lower than average, with approximately 6.36 million shares traded, a 54% decline from the usual 13.85 million shares. The stock had previously closed at $234.69.
Several research analysts have recently shared their views on Salesforce. Barclays raised its price target to $276 from $236 and maintained an "overweight" rating. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating with a $300 price target, while BMO Capital Markets increased its target to $285 from $250 and gave an "outperform" rating. Weiss Ratings upgraded the stock to a "hold (c)" rating, and Deutsche Bank reaffirmed a "buy" rating. Overall, Salesforce has a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with a price target of $275.14.
The company reported strong earnings for the quarter, with $5.90 EPS, exceeding analysts' estimates of $3.27. Revenue was $11.35 billion, slightly above expectations of $11.33 billion. Salesforce's net margin stood at 21.99%, and its return on equity was 24.90%. The company's revenue grew by 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.
In other news, Salesforce announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44, payable on October 8th to stockholders of record on September 17th. The dividend yield is 0.8%. Insider activity included Director Craig Conway selling 4,500 shares at $260.61 each, while Director David Blair Kirk bought 4,176 shares at $239.33 each. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.