Salesforce Earnings Beat Estimates, Stock Rises
Shares in Salesforce (CRM) rose on Thursday after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the July quarter. The company’s cost-cutting efforts improved its margins, leading to positive results. Here are the key details:
Financial Results
- Second-quarter earnings jumped 78% to $2.12 per share on an adjusted basis.
- Revenue climbed 11% to $8.6 billion.
- Analysts expected earnings of $1.90 per share on sales of $8.53 billion.
- Operating margins came in at 31.6% versus estimates of 28.3%.
Analyst Comments
TD Cowen analyst Derrick Wood praised Salesforce’s ability to reduce costs without disrupting sales. However, he noted the need for better top-line growth to drive valuations.
Goldman Sachs analyst Kash Rangan highlighted Salesforce’s achievement of exceeding a 30% operating margin for the first time. He expects profitability to sustain at this level despite reinvestment in artificial intelligence.
Key Metric Tops Views
Current remaining performance obligations (CRPO bookings) rose 12% to $24.1 billion, surpassing estimates of $23.67 billion. CRPO bookings are a combination of deferred revenue and order backlog.
Future Outlook
- Salesforce projected a profit of $2.05 per share for the current quarter, ahead of estimates of $1.84 per share.
- The company predicted revenue of $8.71 billion, topping estimates of $8.67 billion.
Before the earnings release, Salesforce stock had already gained about 59% in 2023. The company sells software under a subscription model and offers solutions for sales operations, customer relationships, marketing, customer services, and e-commerce.
Follow Reinhardt Krause on Twitter @reinhardtk_tech for updates on 5G wireless, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and cloud computing.
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