Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 1.3% – Here’s Why

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) traded down 1.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $229.81 and last traded at $233.36. Approximately 11,868,545 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 15% from the average session volume of 14,026,866 shares. The stock had previously closed at $236.42.

Salesforce News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AIforce expands Salesforce’s AI strategy. At Dreamforce 2026, Salesforce introduced AIforce, an open and provider-agnostic AI layer designed to connect governed, agentic AI across customer workflows and partner ecosystems. Integrations with AWS and Google Cloud, along with adoption of Agentforce and Data Cloud 360, support the argument that Salesforce could become an operating backbone for enterprise AI. Can Salesforce’s New AIforce Layer Deepen Its Ecosystem Moat and Monetization Story for CRM?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support is improving. Wells Fargo raised its Salesforce price target, citing customer demand for Agentforce and the possibility that approximately $1.5 billion in Agentforce annual recurring revenue can accelerate growth. Other recent commentary argues that Salesforce’s agentic-AI business is scaling faster than its valuation suggests. Wells Fargo Raises Salesforce’s Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Sector strength and valuation are providing support. Enterprise software stocks rallied even as broader large-cap technology shares weakened, while value- and momentum-oriented screens continued to highlight CRM. Salesforce’s valuation remains more moderate than many high-growth technology companies, which may attract investors seeking established software exposure. Enterprise Software Stocks Rally
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also focused on Salesforce’s AI investments. CEO Marc Benioff said the company’s investment in Anthropic was partly a response to being unable to invest in OpenAI, and could ultimately be worth tens of billions. The potential is significant, but returns depend on the broader AI ecosystem and Salesforce’s ability to convert investments into software revenue. Marc Benioff says Salesforce’s investment in Anthropic
• Negative Sentiment: AI disruption remains the principal risk. Critics argue that large installed customer bases can make it difficult for Salesforce to adapt quickly as AI changes enterprise software, while worsening Agentforce unit economics could limit profitability even if usage grows. Investors therefore need evidence that AI adoption will produce durable, high-margin revenue rather than increase costs or cannibalize existing CRM products. Salesforce: AWU Economics Are Worsening

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on CRM. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Wolfe Research upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, KeyCorp cut shares of Salesforce from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.14.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.5%

The stock has a market capitalization of $196.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.20. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $212.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $190.04. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The CRM provider reported $5.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $2.63. The company had revenue of $11.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.33 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 24.90%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.91 earnings per share. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 16.670-16.710 EPS and its Q3 2027 guidance at 3.420-3.440 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 12.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 17th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 17th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.04%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, Director Craig Conway sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,416,936.57. This trade represents a 45.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Blair Kirk acquired 4,176 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The stock was acquired 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 directly owned 18,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,486,958.84. The trade was a 28.66% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 410.3% during the 1st quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 148 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Salesforce

Salesforce, Inc is a cloud-based software company that provides customer relationship management (CRM) technology and related enterprise applications. Its platform helps organizations manage sales, customer service, marketing, commerce, data analytics and business operations through subscription-based software and cloud services.

The company’s product portfolio includes Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud, Data Cloud and the Salesforce Platform. Salesforce also offers Slack for workplace collaboration, Tableau for data visualization and analytics, MuleSoft for application integration, and artificial intelligence capabilities, including its Agentforce platform for building and deploying AI agents.

Founded in 1999, Salesforce is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and serves businesses and organizations across a broad range of industries and geographic markets worldwide.