CRM: Salesforce Stock Jumps 2% as Traders Cheer Wider Profit Margins

Profitability picked up the pace last quarter, reaching a solid 35.5% margin, topping expectations and growing from last year.

📈 Salesforce Pops on Margin Strength

• Salesforce stock CRM climbed 2% in pre-market Thursday as traders cheered a standout 35.5% operating margin. The figure is well above expectations and a solid jump from last year’s 33.1%. Efficiency stories sell, especially in a shaky tech tape.
• Adjusted EPS of $3.25 crushed the $2.86 consensus, showing that profitability, not just revenue growth, is now steering investor conviction.
• Revenue came in just a hair below estimates, but the market quickly forgave the miss given the sharp margin expansion.

🧮 Guidance Feeds the Bulls

• Fourth-quarter guidance topped views, with Salesforce projecting up to $3.04 EPS on as much as $11.23 billion in revenue, ahead of what Wall Street modeled.
• Strong full-year guidance reinforced the story that Salesforce has found a leaner, more profitable operating rhythm after years of heavy investment.
• Net income jumped to $2.09 billion from $1.53 billion a year ago – a reminder that cost discipline pays off, even when top-line growth slows.

📉 Tough Year, but Signs of Life

• Even with the jump, Salesforce shares remain lower by more than 25% this year – a steep slide for a mega-cap that once traded like a growth darling.
• Still, widening margins and better-than-projected guidance offer a path forward. If the profit trend holds, 2026 could look a lot less painful than 2025.