Shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) plunged in after-hours trading after the software firm reported earnings for its first quarter of Fiscal Year 2025. Earnings per share came in at $2.44, which beat analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.37 per share. However, sales increased by 10.7% year-over-year, with revenue hitting $9.13 billion. This missed analysts’ expectations of $9.146 billion.
Looking forward, management now expects revenue for FY 2025 to be between $37.7 billion and $38 billion, with a non-GAAP operating margin of 32.5%. For reference, analysts were expecting $38 billion in revenue.
Salesforce Returns $2.6B to Shareholders
During the third quarter, Salesforce returned over $2.6 billion to shareholders. Dividends made up $400 million, or $0.40 per share, while buybacks made up the remaining $2.2 billion. The firm has regularly repurchased its shares each quarter since October 2022 (as demonstrated in the image below) and has $x billion remaining under its buyback plan.
Is CRM a Good Stock to Buy Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on CRM stock based on 21 Buys, eight Holds, and zero Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 23% rally in its share price over the past year, the average CRM price target of $340.96 per share implies 25.92% upside potential. However, it’s worth noting that estimates will likely change following today’s earnings report.
