Salesforce Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:CRM)

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders purchased 98,506 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 21% compared to the typical daily volume of 81,416 call options.

Salesforce Trading Up 8.4%

NYSE CRM opened at $191.00 on Friday. Salesforce has a one year low of $163.52 and a one year high of $276.80. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $180.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $210.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.11, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The CRM provider reported $3.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.13 by $0.75. Salesforce had a net margin of 18.73% and a return on equity of 18.72%. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.58 earnings per share. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.060-14.120 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 3.250-3.270 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce will post 9.72 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 16th that allows the company to repurchase $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the CRM provider to buy up to 14.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CRM shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $194.00 to $173.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. B. Riley Financial increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $205.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $281.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.97.

Trending Headlines about Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce beat fiscal Q1 expectations, with revenue rising 13% year over year to $11.13 billion and EPS of $3.88 topping estimates, reinforcing that demand remains healthy. CRM Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y on ARR Milestone
• Positive Sentiment: The company said Agentforce annual recurring revenue crossed $1 billion and lifted FY2027 revenue guidance, suggesting its AI products are starting to contribute meaningfully to growth. Salesforce raises FY 2027 revenue guide to $45.9B-$46.2B while launching $25B accelerated share repurchase
• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce announced a $25 billion accelerated share repurchase program and highlighted $6.6 billion in free cash flow, signaling strong cash generation and shareholder returns. Salesforce Announces Quarterly Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: New customer and partner headlines, including CVS Health expanding use of Salesforce’s Agentforce Health, support the view that the company’s AI platform is gaining traction. CVS Health to Deliver Faster, More Personalized Call Center Care for Millions of Members with Salesforce’s Agentforce Health
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive, but many trimmed price targets after the report, reflecting a more cautious stance on near-term upside. Salesforce Q1 Results ‘Uninspiring’: ‘Nothing To Dispel The AI Threat Narrative’
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were disappointed by Q2 revenue guidance, which came in slightly below expectations, keeping the stock under pressure despite the earnings beat. CRM Stock Dips After-Hours As Q2 Revenue Outlook Marginally Misses Expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish commentary continues to focus on the risk that AI agents could eventually disrupt Salesforce’s core revenue model, which is weighing on sentiment. Analyst warns Salesforce has an AI problem

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Blair Kirk purchased 2,570 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $194.62 per share, with a total value of $500,173.40. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 13,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,664,153.18. This trade represents a 23.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Laura Alber purchased 2,571 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $194.58 per share, for a total transaction of $500,265.18. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 9,530 shares in the company, valued at $1,854,347.40. The trade was a 36.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 3.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 25,668 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $8,582,000 after buying an additional 3,102 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 205 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $747,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 3.7% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,958 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $807,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Bank grew its position in Salesforce by 5.2% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 10,198 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,781,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.