Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE: CRM) heads into a pivotal earnings week with its share price hovering in the mid‑$230s and Wall Street laser‑focused on whether the company’s big bet on AI and “agentic” workflows can re‑ignite growth. As of the close on December 2, 2025, Salesforce stock traded around $234.71, up roughly 0.8% on the day, with after‑hours quotes inching closer to $235.69. [1]
Below is a comprehensive look at the latest price action, fresh analyst forecasts, institutional moves, and AI‑driven strategy updates, based on coverage and filings published up to December 2, 2025.
Salesforce (CRM) stock price today and recent performance
- Last close (Dec 2, 2025): ~$234.7 per share
- After‑hours (approx.): ~$235.7
- Market cap: About $220–221 billion
- Trailing P/E: ~34x earnings
- 1‑year range: roughly $222 (low) to $369 (high) [2]
MarketBeat’s recent institutional‑ownership recap notes that Salesforce trades with a P/E near 33–34x, a price‑to‑earnings‑growth (PEG) ratio around 2.1, and a beta of ~1.19, underscoring that CRM still behaves like a growth tech name rather than a “defensive” software play. [3]
Despite today’s bounce, Salesforce has had a difficult 2025: a late‑November 24/7 Wall St. forecast piece estimated the stock was down about 31% year‑to‑date and 33% over the past 12 months, after a sharp pullback from its late‑2024 highs. [4]
Why Salesforce is back in focus this week
Salesforce reports fiscal Q3 2026 results on Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. ET, after the market close. [5]
Multiple outlets have highlighted CRM as one of the marquee earnings events of the week:
- Investopedia lists Salesforce among the “big software names” reporting, suggesting its numbers could “inject more enthusiasm into the AI trade” following a strong revenue forecast around AI offerings. [6]
- AlphaStreet emphasizes that Salesforce delivered “stronger‑than‑expected” revenue and earnings in the first half of FY26, and that Q3 is arriving amid shifting enterprise demand and intense focus on AI. [7]
In other words, this quarter isn’t just about a beat or miss—it’s a referendum on the AI pivot and whether Salesforce can translate its “Agentforce” vision into durable, profitable growth.
What Wall Street expects from Q3 2026 earnings
Consensus numbers
Several sources converge on similar expectations for Q3 FY26:
- Revenue: about $10.27 billion, up roughly 8.8% year‑over‑year [8]
- Non‑GAAP EPS: around $2.86, versus $2.41 in the prior‑year quarter [9]
These figures align closely with Salesforce’s own Q3 guidance, issued with its Q2 FY26 results, which called for:
- Q3 revenue:$10.24–$10.29 billion (+8–9% YoY)
- Non‑GAAP EPS:$2.84–$2.86 [10]
The company also raised full‑year FY26 guidance in September, targeting revenue of $41.1–$41.3 billion (8.5–9% growth) and a non‑GAAP operating margin of 34.1%, alongside 12–13% growth in operating cash flow. [11]
Analyst views heading into the print
Analysts broadly expect Salesforce to clear a relatively low bar:
- TipRanks reports that Oppenheimer’s Brian Schwartz cut his price target from $315 to $300 but maintained a Buy rating, citing sector‑wide valuation compression rather than company‑specific worries. [12]
- Schwartz remains upbeat on near‑term results, pointing to:
- Pricing benefits
- Momentum in Agentforce (Salesforce’s AI agent platform) and Data Cloud
- Normal year‑end IT spending patterns
- An estimated ~8% free‑cash‑flow yield, which he believes limits downside risk [13]
A separate AlphaStreet preview notes that Q2 FY26 already set a high bar: Salesforce delivered adjusted EPS of $2.91 (vs. $2.56 a year earlier) on $10.2 billion in revenue (+10% YoY), with AI and Data Cloud key contributors. [14]
AI, Agentforce and Data Cloud: the core of the bull case
Salesforce is leaning hard into AI as the next growth engine, and that is central to both optimism and skepticism around the stock.
Q2 FY26: AI metrics to know
From Salesforce’s latest reported quarter (Q2 FY26, ended July 31, 2025): [15]
- Revenue: $10.2 billion (+10% YoY; +9% in constant currency)
- Subscription & support revenue: $9.7 billion (+11% YoY)
- GAAP operating margin: 22.8%
- Non‑GAAP operating margin: 34.3%
- Data Cloud + AI ARR: over $1.2 billion, up 120% YoY, with more than 60 deals above $1 million that include both Data Cloud and AI.
The company also disclosed that Agentforce and Data Cloud bookings are increasingly coming from existing customers, with more than 40% of Q2 bookings in those categories tied to expansions, a sign that AI is deepening Salesforce’s footprint inside large accounts. [16]
Agentforce, Einstein Copilot and the “agentic enterprise”
Salesforce’s narrative is shifting from “CRM plus AI features” to a full agent‑based operating system:
- 24/7 Wall St. reports that Salesforce processed 25 trillion Einstein AI transactions in a recent quarter and manages around 250 petabytes of customer data, reflecting the scale of the data foundation behind its AI strategy. [17]
- Marc Benioff has described the future state as one where companies employ not only a sales force and service force, but an “agent force”—autonomous AI agents that execute workflows end‑to‑end. [18]
On the product side, third‑party analyses help flesh out what this looks like:
- Einstein Copilot is described as a conversational, generative‑AI assistant embedded natively in Salesforce, pulling from Data Cloud and Salesforce’s metadata to answer natural‑language questions and trigger actions (draft emails, update records, schedule calls, etc.). [19]
- Agentforce layers agents on top of Customer 360 and Data Cloud, enabling more autonomous workflows across sales, service, marketing and industry‑specific tasks. [20]
In short, Salesforce is not just bolting on AI; it’s attempting to rebuild its CRM stack into an “agentic” platform. For bulls, this justifies a premium valuation. For skeptics, it raises questions about execution risk and adoption speed.
Valuation check: why Salesforce trades at an AI premium
A fresh 24/7 Wall St. analysis on December 2 contrasts Salesforce with Adobe and concludes that CRM trades at a hefty valuation premium: [21]
- Salesforce: ~34x trailing P/E, ~17% net margin, ~11% return on equity
- Adobe: ~20x trailing P/E, ~30% net margin, ~53% return on equity
Despite weaker profitability, Salesforce commands about a 70% earnings multiple premium to Adobe, according to that piece. The argument is that markets are paying up for:
- Larger scale (Salesforce’s trailing revenue around $39–40 billion vs. Adobe’s ~$23 billion)
- Faster earnings growth—Salesforce’s EPS growth has recently outpaced Adobe’s
- The perceived long‑run payoff from Agentforce and Data Cloud as AI infrastructure
The flip side is obvious: if AI monetization disappoints or margins stall, that premium can compress quickly—especially after a year in which the stock already corrected more than 30% from its highs. [22]
What analysts and hedge funds are doing with CRM
Street consensus and price targets
Across major aggregators, the headline message is still positive but no longer euphoric:
- MarketBeat:
- Consensus rating: “Moderate Buy” based on 40 analysts
- Breakdown: 26 Buy, 13 Hold, 1 Sell
- Average 12‑month price target:$325.42, implying ~39% upside from the mid‑$230s
- Target range: $221 (low) to $430 (high) [23]
- StockAnalysis.com:
- 33 covering analysts
- Consensus rating: “Buy”
- Average target:$326.52, implying about 39% potential upside
- Low–high range: $221–$430 [24]
Some notable recent moves:
- Citizens analyst Patrick Walravens reiterated a $430 target with a Buy rating on December 2, 2025. [25]
- Oppenheimer’s Schwartz trimmed his target to $300, still rating the stock Buy, arguing that Salesforce should be a “winner in the AI transition” given its data assets and Agentforce progress. [26]
Hedge funds and institutions: buying the dip
Two December 2 MarketBeat filings highlight significant institutional interest: [27]
- River Road Asset Management:
- Boosted its Salesforce stake by 81.2% in Q2 to 58,099 shares, worth about $15.0 million at quarter‑end.
- The article also notes large buying from Schroder Investment Management, which increased its position by 45.8% to almost 3.93 million shares (≈$1.07 billion). [28]
- Arrowstreet Capital:
- Lifted its position by 56.4% to 2,479,989 shares (~0.26% of the company), worth around $676 million. [29]
Both pieces emphasize that institutional investors collectively own about 80% of Salesforce’s float, with insiders controlling roughly 3%. [30]
Insider activity is more mixed: CEO Marc Benioff has sold small batches of shares, while at least one director has been a net buyer over recent months. Overall, insiders have sold tens of thousands of shares in the last quarter, but these sales are small relative to their remaining stakes. [31]
Long‑term forecasts: where could Salesforce be by 2030?
While most brokers focus on 12‑month targets, several outlets are now sketching 2030 scenarios.
Broker and aggregator models
StockAnalysis’ long‑range consensus sees: [32]
- Revenue:
- FY2025: $37.9B
- FY2026: $41.66B (+9.9%)
- FY2027: $45.41B (+9.0%)
- EPS:
- FY2025: $6.36
- FY2026: $11.49 (massive jump, reflecting margin expansion and restructuring benefits)
- FY2027: $12.85
In other words, analysts are effectively modeling high‑single‑digit top‑line growth and double‑digit EPS growth over the next few years, supported by sustained cost discipline and buybacks.
24/7 Wall St. 2025–2030 price path
24/7 Wall St. published a dedicated 2025–2030 Salesforce forecast on November 28, 2025, with its own price trajectory: [33]
- Their 2025 year‑end target:$302 (~32% upside from late‑November levels)
- 2030 target:$493.80, implying about 116% upside versus current prices
- Intermediate projected prices:
- 2026: $333.90
- 2027: $380.70
- 2028: $412.80
- 2029: $451.50
The article bases this on:
- A long track record of 24% revenue CAGR (FY2014–FY2024) and 44% net‑income CAGR (2017–2024)
- A strengthened balance sheet, with roughly $8.2 billion net cash
- Growing dividends and an expanded $50 billion share‑repurchase program [34]
- Continued R&D into AI, blockchain and quantum technologies, and a large VC arm (Salesforce Ventures) including a $500 million Generative AI Fund and a major stake in Hugging Face. [35]
The same piece flags some important headwinds:
- Intensifying competition from Microsoft Dynamics 365, Oracle, SAP, HubSpot and others
- Activist pressure to limit large acquisitions
- Slower‑than‑hoped adoption of Agentforce contributing to softer guidance earlier in 2025
- The departure of long‑time CFO Amy Weaver and transition to Robin Washington in 2025, viewed as a non‑trivial risk factor for investors used to Weaver’s track record. [36]
Key risks to the Salesforce story
Even as Wall Street’s 12‑month targets suggest sizeable upside, the latest coverage surfaces several meaningful risks investors should keep in mind:
- AI execution and adoption risk
- A MarketWatch‑syndicated piece (quoted in summaries) notes that Salesforce beat estimates last quarter, yet the stock still fell as investors remained unconvinced about the payoff from its AI push—dubbed by some as an “AI curse.” [37]
- 24/7 Wall St. explicitly cites lagging Agentforce adoption as one reason guidance has, at times, disappointed. [38]
- Premium valuation
- With CRM trading at roughly 34x trailing earnings vs. ~20x for Adobe, any stumble in earnings or AI metrics could prompt further multiple compression. [39]
- Competitive pressure
- The long‑term forecast article outlines a crowded field of rivals across CRM, marketing, service and AI agents—from Microsoft, Oracle and SAP to HubSpot and Zendesk—each attacking pieces of Salesforce’s stack. [40]
- Macro and IT‑spending uncertainty
- AlphaStreet highlights that Q3 arrives amid macro cross‑currents and shifting enterprise IT priorities; even the strongest AI story can’t fully escape CIO budget cycles. [41]
- Acquisition and integration risk
- Salesforce recently closed its acquisition of Informatica, an AI‑powered data‑management provider, adding both capabilities and integration complexity. [42]
What to watch next for Salesforce investors
As Salesforce steps into earnings on December 3, 2025, recent news and forecasts suggest a short list of make‑or‑break metrics:
- Q3 topline and EPS vs. guidance
- Can Salesforce deliver revenue at or above $10.27 billion and non‑GAAP EPS around $2.86?
- Any revision to FY26 guidance (currently $41.1–$41.3 billion in revenue, 34.1% non‑GAAP operating margin) will likely move the stock sharply. [43]
- Data Cloud and AI ARR growth
- Investors will be watching whether Data Cloud + AI ARR continues to grow well above the broader business after Q2’s 120% YoY surge and $1.2B ARR milestone. [44]
- Agentforce and Einstein Copilot adoption
- Management commentary on customer case studies, attach rates and expansion deals for Agentforce and Einstein Copilot will help validate (or challenge) the long‑term AI thesis outlined by Salesforce and third‑party partners. [45]
- Margin trajectory and cash returns
- With FY26 expected to be a record year for operating cash flow (nearly $15B, according to Salesforce), investors want to see continued progress on margin expansion and clarity on future buybacks and dividends. [46]
- Institutional positioning and analyst reactions
- Hedge funds like Arrowstreet and River Road have been buying into weakness, and Street targets still imply ~40% upside. How those views change after the print will say a lot about sentiment heading into 2026. [47]
Final note
This article is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Investors should conduct their own research and consider their risk tolerance before making any decisions related to Salesforce or any other security.
References
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