New York, Jan 30, 2026, 19:03 EST — After-hours
- Shares of Salesforce slipped 0.8% in late Friday trading
- The stock took a sharp dive Thursday amid a wider rout in software shares
- Traders are gearing up for next week, eyeing new U.S. data to gauge rates and risk appetite
Salesforce shares slipped 0.8% to $212.29 in Friday’s after-hours trading.
The move follows a steep selloff in software stocks that pulled Salesforce down. Investors are wrestling with whether rapid advances in AI tools will cut into demand or undercut pricing power for subscription software.
This matters for Salesforce as it pushes to add more AI features to its core customer-management products, even as traders grow less tolerant of big tech’s spending narratives.
Salesforce dropped 7.1% on Thursday as worries spread after SAP’s cloud forecast and ServiceNow’s earnings miss reignited fears that established SaaS firms are losing ground to newer AI-powered rivals. The S&P 500 Software and Services Index sank 8.7%. Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist at LPL Financial, said the market appears to be “pricing a worst-case scenario” for software amid AI disruption concerns. Reuters
Traders will zero in on U.S. data next week for signs on interest rates, which typically weigh most on high-growth tech stocks when borrowing costs stay elevated. The ISM Manufacturing PMI report drops on the first business day at 10:00 a.m. EST. Then, the January jobs report arrives Feb. 6 at 8:30 a.m. ET. Institute for Supply Management
Fed watching remains a key focus. On Friday, Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman reaffirmed her support for rate cuts in 2026, despite endorsing a pause at the Fed’s latest meeting. Reuters
Salesforce’s next major event is its earnings report, expected on Feb. 25, according to Nasdaq’s earnings calendar. Nasdaq
Salesforce raised its full-year revenue forecast back in December, setting a tougher benchmark thanks to growing demand for its AI software, even though its latest quarterly revenue just fell short of expectations. Reuters
The downside is straightforward: if clients hold back on new software contracts, or if investors remain convinced that AI will continue to push software valuations down, Salesforce could face sustained pressure no matter how well it performs.
Monday’s open will reveal if Thursday’s sell-off was just a brief dip or the beginning of a bigger correction. Traders are also eyeing the Feb. 6 U.S. jobs report, with Salesforce’s earnings due late February as the next key company update.
