Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Given New $197.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its target price decreased by Citigroup from $257.00 to $197.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $380.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Arete Research upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $312.00.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM opened at $187.89 on Wednesday. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $180.24 and a 12-month high of $329.74. The business’s fifty day moving average is $233.77 and its 200 day moving average is $240.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $176.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.27.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.39. Salesforce had a net margin of 17.91% and a return on equity of 14.41%. The business had revenue of $10.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.41 EPS. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Salesforce has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.020-3.040 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.16%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, Director David Blair Kirk acquired 1,936 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $258.64 per share, for a total transaction of $500,727.04. Following the purchase, the director owned 10,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,761,499.28. The trade was a 22.15% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 134,662 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.70, for a total transaction of $31,605,171.40. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 139,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,803,314.90. This trade represents a 49.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Aspire Growth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Aspire Growth Partners LLC now owns 3,355 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $795,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Lifeworks Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Lifeworks Advisors LLC now owns 1,420 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 4.4% during the second quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 989 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 3.1% in the third quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,420 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 4,331 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,147,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New and expanded partner integrations (AcuityMD on AppExchange; Asymbl collaboration) boost product stickiness and go-to-market reach, supporting revenue upside from AI-enabled workflows. AcuityMD Announces AcuityMD for Salesforce on Salesforce AppExchange Asymbl Announces Expanded Collaboration with Salesforce
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and media pieces highlighting expanding AI partnerships and valuation support give investors conviction that Salesforce can monetize agent/AI demand as enterprise spending rebalances. Assessing Salesforce (CRM) Valuation As AI Partnerships Expand And Analyst Support Builds Ahead Of Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Company is entering earnings season — recent commentary and previews (Zacks) show mixed odds for a material beat; investors are positioning ahead of the print. Salesforce.com (CRM) Earnings Expected to Grow: Should You Buy? Salesforce (CRM) Projected to Post Earnings on Wednesday
• Negative Sentiment: Several firms trimmed price targets or moved to neutral/equal-weight (Citigroup lowered to $197 neutral; Wells Fargo cut to $235 equal weight; RBC issued a Hold), which creates headline pressure and reduces near-term analyst-driven demand. Salesforce (CRM) Receives a Hold from RBC Capital Analyst Coverage Changes (Benzinga)
• Negative Sentiment: Sector-level AI fears — coverage of a broader “SaaSpocalypse” and weak guidance at peers (Palo Alto Networks) are pressuring software stocks generally and can drag CRM despite company-specific wins. Palo Alto shares sink 8%, CEO defends cybersecurity’s position as AI hits software stocks ServiceNow Insiders Buy as Wall Street Panics Over an AI SaaSpocalypse
• Neutral Sentiment: Checks from UBS point to an uptick in Agentforce but “muted” core growth — mixed operational signals that could lead to a range-bound reaction to the upcoming report. Salesforce in focus as checks show uptick in Agentforce, ‘muted’ core growth: UBS

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.