Is Now the Time to Buy Salesforce? Here's What the Numbers Reveal
Key Points
Salesforce's profitability is near its highest level ever.
The stock's valuation is more attractive than it's been in years.
Some SaaS companies could be disrupted by agentic AI, but Salesforce isn't likely to be one of them.
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Once upon a time, Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) was the poster child for growth. The company pioneered cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) systems.
However, Salesforce's share price has declined over the last five years, a period in which the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) soared nearly 70%. The significant gap between Salesforce's performance and the S&P 500 widened amid the widespread sell-off of SaaS stocks this year.
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But is now the time to buy Salesforce stock? Here's what the numbers reveal.
Salesforce by the numbers
Importantly, Salesforce's revenue continues to grow, rising 12% year over year in the fourth quarter of 2025 to $11.2 billion. Granted, revenue growth has been much slower than in the past. However, Salesforce's growth rate isn't too shabby for a mature company with a market cap of $170 billion-plus.
Salesforce reported $72 billion in total remaining performance obligations (RPO) in Q4, a 14% year-over-year increase. RPOs are contracted, non-cancelable future revenue that the cloud software company hasn't recognized yet. CEO Marc Benioff called reaching this RPO level "an incredible milestone."
The company's profitability is near its highest level ever. Salesforce's operating margin based on Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) was 20.1% in fiscal year 2026. Its non-GAAP operating margin stood at 34.1%.
Thanks to the so-called "SaaSpocalypse," Salesforce's valuation is more attractive than it's been in years. The stock trades at only 13.8 times forward earnings. Salesforce is taking advantage of this discount to repurchase shares. The company recently announced a $50 billion share repurchase plan, following $12.7 billion in stock buybacks in the last fiscal year.
Image source: Getty Images.
Adding up to a solid pick
Salesforce's numbers seem to add up to the stock being a solid pick. But what about the concerns that AI will disrupt the company's business model? I think they're greatly overblown.
Agentic AI is more of a tailwind for Salesforce than a threat. The company has closed over 29,000 deals for its Agentforce agentic AI platform since the product launched in late 2024. The number of customers using Agentforce soared nearly 50% quarter over quarter in Q4. Major companies using the product include Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), AT&T (NYSE: T), and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE).
In Salesforce's Q4 earnings conference call, Benioff stated, "This obviously is not a rational market." I think he's right. Some SaaS stocks could be in trouble as agentic AI rapidly gains adoption, but Salesforce isn't likely to be one of them.
Should you buy stock in Salesforce right now?
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Keith Speights has positions in Amazon and Pfizer. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Pfizer, and Salesforce. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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