SAN FRANCISCO, August 30, 2026, 00:18 (EDT)
- Salesforce finished Friday at $256.00, rising 1.6%, with a volume of 34.4 million shares traded.
- Thursday’s 22.6% jump in earnings drove volume to 2.3 times its usual recent average.
- The mean analyst price target, currently close to $261, suggests an upside potential of about 2%.
Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) advanced 1.6% on Friday. Volume hit 34.4 million shares, roughly 2.3 times the stock’s recent average. Shares ended the session at $256.00, trading between $247.77 and $263.45 market data.
The gain came after Salesforce shares surged 22.6% post-earnings on Thursday, marking their strongest single-day performance in six years. The two-day rally now narrows the gap below analysts’ stated price targets.
The consensus price target among 47 analysts stands at $261.15, MarketBeat data shows. This represents a premium of roughly 2% over Friday’s closing price. Analyst forecasts vary significantly, spanning from $160 to $400.
Salesforce posted adjusted earnings of $5.90 per share for its fiscal second quarter. The result included a $2.53-per-share boost from strategic investments, Reuters reported. Excluding this gain, the core earnings came to about $3.37 per share.
Revenue increased by 11% to $11.35 billion. Informatica added $456 million and accounted for over four percentage points of total growth. Subscription and support revenue totaled $10.8 billion company results.
The AI indicator showed greater strength. Annual recurring revenue for Agentforce and Data 360 rose over 210%, reaching almost $3.9 billion. Salesforce reported that clients used 3.2 billion agentic work units in the quarter.
| Company | Friday close | Friday move | Trailing P/E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salesforce | $256.00 | up 1.6% | 23.5x |
| ServiceNow | $144.71 | advanced 4.5% | 89.3x |
| Workday | $204.72 | rose 5.6% | 41.4x |
| Adobe | $291.52 | gained 0.8% | 16.7x |
Salesforce trades at a trailing multiple of 23.5 times, which is lower than those of ServiceNow and Workday, but higher than Adobe’s. This context clarifies why signs of profitable AI-driven growth triggered a strong movement in its share price.
The company’s current remaining performance obligations increased by 14% to $33.5 billion. This metric, which signals future demand, grew faster than reported revenue. Overall remaining obligations totaled $66.3 billion.
Management raised its fiscal 2027 revenue outlook to a range of $46.1 billion to $46.4 billion, with the midpoint suggesting about 11.5% growth. The company also projected a 34.3% non-GAAP operating margin and adjusted earnings between $16.67 and $16.71.
Salesforce is trading at roughly 15.3 times the midpoint of its adjusted earnings outlook based on Friday’s closing price. The company’s multiple on the midpoint for GAAP earnings guidance is approximately 25 times. This difference is due to adjustments for acquisition accounting and stock-based compensation.
Per-share growth was further aided by stock buybacks. The quarter’s weighted average share count included 103 million shares brought in via an accelerated repurchase agreement. GAAP diluted earnings increased to $4.29, up from $1.96.
The next test is set for Tuesday, September 1. Salesforce plans to host a webinar at 11:00 EDT focused on product adoption and momentum. Investors will watch for signs that AI deployment is leading to sustained subscription revenue.
Risks: Informatica’s reported growth may become less comparable to its historical business. Gains from investments are subject to reversal. If Agentforce adoption takes longer to translate into contracted revenue, it could weigh on the company’s recently increased valuation.
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