Salesforce shares rated Hold as analyst sees excitement around new AI platform

Published 20/09/2024, 15:20
© Reuters


On Friday, TD Cowen maintained a Hold rating on Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM), with a consistent price target of $290.00. The firm's stance comes after attending Salesforce's DreamForce conference in San Francisco, which saw a turnout of 45,000 attendees. The conference highlighted Agentforce as a major development, showcasing Salesforce's early market entry with a comprehensive AI Agent platform designed for front office engagements, leveraging private customer data.

The new AI innovation introduced at the conference has sparked growing enthusiasm among participants, despite the backdrop of challenging spending conditions in the market. TD Cowen's assessment reflects a cautious optimism, acknowledging the potential of Salesforce's latest technological advancements while also considering the broader economic environment that could impact customer spending and adoption rates.

Salesforce's AI Agent platform represents a step forward in the company's offerings, aiming to enhance customer engagement through advanced artificial intelligence capabilities. This innovation allows for the creation and fine-tuning of AI agents that can interact with private customer data, potentially transforming the way businesses manage their front office operations.

Despite the promising introduction of new technology at the DreamForce conference, TD Cowen's analysis suggests that the current spending conditions remain a concern. The firm's reiterated Hold rating and price target indicate a watchful approach, balancing the excitement around Salesforce's AI Agent platform with the realities of the market.

Salesforce, a leader in customer relationship management software, continues to innovate in the AI space, as evidenced by the developments shared at the DreamForce conference. The company's strategic focus on AI and the front office experience underlines its commitment to staying at the forefront of technological advancements in the industry.

In other recent news, Salesforce.com has been in the spotlight for its robust second-quarter earnings and strategic initiatives. The company's earnings per share reached $2.56, surpassing the consensus estimate of $2.36 and the previous year's figure of $2.12. An 8% increase in sales was noted, driven mainly by a 9% rise in subscription and support revenues. Additionally, Salesforce has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Own Company, a data protection and management solutions provider, for $1.9 billion in cash.

Recent developments include the launch of Agentforce, an AI-driven suite of autonomous bots, and a partnership with IBM (NYSE:IBM) to integrate advanced AI capabilities into its platform. Salesforce also reported a significant increase in the adoption of its Data Cloud platform, with a 130% year-over-year growth in its paid customer base.

Analyst firms including Needham, Baird, Truist Securities, and Mizuho Securities have maintained their positive outlooks on Salesforce, while Erste Group downgraded the stock from Buy to Hold due to projected slower growth. The analysts highlighted Salesforce's potential for continued growth, driven by strategic moves and product innovations.

InvestingPro Insights


As Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM) continues to make waves with its AI Agent platform, insights from InvestingPro highlight the company's strong financial and market position. Salesforce boasts a perfect Piotroski Score of 9, indicating a very healthy financial situation, which could reassure investors about the company's ability to invest in and support new technologies like the AI Agent platform. Additionally, management's aggressive share buyback strategy signals confidence in the company's value and prospects.

InvestingPro Data shows Salesforce with an impressive gross profit margin of 76.35% over the last twelve months as of Q2 2025, reinforcing the company's ability to generate profits from its sales. The company's revenue growth remains robust at 10.26% during the same period, illustrating sustained business expansion despite market challenges. Furthermore, with a P/E ratio of 45.64 and a PEG ratio of 0.16, Salesforce is trading at a low price to earnings growth ratio, suggesting that its earnings growth rate is high relative to its share price.

For readers interested in deeper analysis and additional insights, there are 13 more InvestingPro Tips available for Salesforce at https://www.investing.com/pro/CRM. These tips provide a comprehensive look at the company's performance, market position, and potential investment opportunities.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers
© 2007-2025 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.