Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares fell Thursday after the company delivered stronger-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results but issued revenue and earnings guidance for the third quarter that came in below Wall Street forecasts.
The weaker outlook tempered investor enthusiasm despite continued momentum in Salesforce’s Data Cloud, AI initiatives, and Agentforce platform.
Revenue for the quarter reached $10.2 billion, surpassing consensus estimates, while earnings per share came in at $2.91.
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Current remaining performance obligations (cRPO) grew 11%, supported by stronger contributions from Sales and Service Cloud and accelerating adoption of Agentforce, which added 6,000 paying customers.
Salesforce also reported that annual recurring revenue from Data Cloud and AI products climbed to $1.2 billion.
Even with the quarterly beat, management kept its fiscal 2026 guidance largely unchanged at $41.1–$41.3 billion in revenue and $11.33–$11.37 in EPS, signaling a more cautious growth trajectory. The company also expanded its share repurchase program by $20 billion, underscoring its commitment to capital returns.
Needham analyst Scott Berg reiterated a Buy rating with a $400 price forecast, noting that while Salesforce outperformed expectations in the second quarter, muted near-term guidance and investor caution weighed on sentiment.
He pointed to Salesforce’s 20% year-over-year increase in sales headcount as a potential driver of future bookings.
Canaccord Genuity analyst David Hynes, who maintained a Buy rating while cutting his price forecast from $350 to $300, characterized the quarter as “steady, not spectacular”.
He cited 9% constant-currency revenue growth and 34.3% operating margins but said much of the upside stemmed from timing-related license and services recognition.
Still, he highlighted robust 120% year-over-year growth in Data Cloud and Agentforce ARR, with 60% more customers moving from pilot projects into production.
KeyBanc analyst Jackson Ader reiterated an Overweight rating but lowered his price forecast from $440 to $400. He pointed to better-than-expected subscription growth, as well as strength in Platform, MuleSoft, and Tableau, though Marketing and Commerce Cloud remained weak.
He also highlighted Agentforce’s rapid expansion, including 50% sequential growth in paid users, and called the upcoming Dreamforce event, where Agentforce 4.0 will be showcased, a potential catalyst.
Bank of America Securities analyst Brad Sills maintained a Buy rating with a $325 price forecast, acknowledging investor concerns about AI disruption but stressing that Salesforce met key growth targets.
Despite meeting Q2 expectations, Salesforce’s results weren’t inspiring, Sills said, but he anticipates an AI-driven acceleration in sales going forward.
He cited cRPO growth, improving Sales and Service Cloud performance, and a sharp increase in Agentforce pilots, which rose from 20 to 120 enterprises, with conversions up 60% quarter-over-quarter.
Sills argued that these developments, along with raised free cash flow guidance to 12–13%, should support sustained mid-teens growth into fiscal 2027.
Price Action: CRM stock is trading lower by 5.63% to $242.10 at last check Thursday.
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