New York, Jan 14, 2026, 11:01 ET — Regular session
- Salesforce shares slipped in late-morning trading after a sharp drop in the prior session.
- The software sector has been under pressure on concerns AI features may not translate into near-term sales.
- Investors are watching early adoption signals for Salesforce’s new Slackbot rollout and the next earnings update.
Salesforce (CRM) shares fell about 0.6% to $239.72 on Wednesday, tracking a broader pullback in U.S. equities as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq ETFs slid.
The move comes a day after Salesforce dropped about 6.5% — its largest one-day percentage fall since late May 2024 — as investors leaned into a fresh round of skepticism about how quickly large software makers can make money from new artificial intelligence tools. Adobe also fell sharply, and some traders rotated toward semiconductors instead, Dow Jones Market Data showed. (MarketWatch)
That debate is landing on Salesforce just as it pushes a new wave of “agent” products — software that can take actions for users, not just answer questions. Salesforce said its redesigned Slackbot is now generally available for Business+ and Enterprise+ customers, rolling out through January and February, with enterprise admins able to set or restrict access until Feb. 10. “It’s the front door to the Agentic Enterprise,” Salesforce co-founder and Slack CTO Parker Harris said. (Salesforce)
Salesforce’s slide on Tuesday also had an outsized impact on the Dow, because the index is price-weighted. A MarketWatch breakdown put Salesforce’s decline at about $17 a share on the day, helping drag the blue-chip index lower alongside Visa. (MarketWatch)
For equity investors, the near-term question is less about product demos and more about proof: whether new AI features drive paid usage, or simply get bundled into existing subscriptions. That matters for a company like Salesforce, where growth has leaned heavily on recurring software revenue and steady price increases.
It also explains why traders have been jumpy around the broader enterprise-software group. The worry is that AI could make some routine work faster — and reduce the number of paid “seats” companies need — while competitors race to offer similar tools with aggressive pricing.
The timing is awkward. U.S. earnings season is ramping up, and investors are looking for results that justify big AI spending across corporate America, not just slogans. (Reuters)
Salesforce has tried to frame its AI push as a revenue lever, not a cost center. In December, the company raised its fiscal 2026 revenue and adjusted profit forecasts, citing uptake in its Agentforce and Data 360 products; industry analyst Rebecca Wettemann said the guidance increase showed confidence in the pipeline and in converting early AI trials into purchases. (Reuters)
But the downside case is straightforward: if customers experiment and then stall, or if the benefits of AI show up mainly as lower headcount rather than higher software spend, the revenue bump investors are paying for could take longer to arrive. Another risk is competition from AI-native tools that undercut legacy suites on price and speed.
For now, Salesforce’s stock is trying to find its footing after Tuesday’s selloff. The next signpost is whether the Slackbot rollout gains traction through the February permission window — and when the company sets the date for its next quarterly report, where investors will press for clearer AI monetization numbers.
