2026 Outlook: Restaurants, Cannabis, and Other Stock Trends to Watch
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Dec 24 2025
0mins
Source: Barron's
- Investment Outlook for 2026: Barron’s Investor Circle reporters are preparing to analyze the investment landscape as 2025 comes to a close.
- Focus on Future Trends: The emphasis is on identifying key trends and opportunities that may shape investment strategies in the upcoming year.
- Market Predictions: Insights and predictions regarding market movements and potential sectors for growth are being gathered.
- Strategic Planning: Investors are encouraged to consider these insights for strategic planning and decision-making for 2026.
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Analyst Views on CRM
Wall Street analysts forecast CRM stock price to rise
39 Analyst Rating
29 Buy
9 Hold
1 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 191.100
Low
223.00
Averages
326.40
High
405.00
Current: 191.100
Low
223.00
Averages
326.40
High
405.00
About CRM
Salesforce, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) technology company. Its artificial intelligence (AI) powered Agentforce 360 Platform offers sales, service, marketing, commerce, collaboration, data management, integration, analytics, and information technology (IT) service solutions. It enables customers to build and deploy digital labor for employees and customers, leveraging autonomous AI agents across business functions. Its service offerings include Agentforce Sales, Agentforce Service, Agentforce 360 Platform, Slack and Others. The Agentforce Sales provides sales capabilities and tools built for organizations across prospecting, sales engagement, team collaboration, sales analytics and AI, sales programs, sales performance, partner management, and revenue and orders. The Agentforce Service provides field service solutions that enable companies to connect service agents, dispatchers and mobile employees through platform to schedule, dispatch and manage jobs.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
- Major Investment Plan: Salesforce has announced a plan to invest $2 billion in France by 2030, aiming to solidify its market position through the establishment of a new AI Innovation Hub and expanded support for AI education and training.
- AI Innovation Hub: The newly established AI Innovation Hub will be located in Paris, leveraging France's exceptional research talent and entrepreneurial energy to drive digital transformation and technological innovation for local businesses.
- Education and Training Support: Salesforce will enhance AI education and workforce training for its customers and partners in France, helping them improve competitiveness in a rapidly evolving technological landscape, thereby promoting sustainable growth across the industry.
- Continuation of Historical Commitment: This investment builds on Salesforce's previous five-year commitment of $3.5 billion to France, demonstrating the company's long-term confidence and strategic focus on the French market, which is expected to have a positive impact on the local economy.
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- Executive Transition: Brian Landsman announces his departure from Salesforce after a 14-year tenure to join OpenAI as VP of Global Partnerships, reflecting his commitment to pursuing new technology ecosystems and driving AI business collaborations.
- Strategic Focus: Landsman aims to build a robust technology ecosystem and accelerate AI adoption among global enterprises, indicating OpenAI's strategic intent to expand its partnership network in the global market.
- Leadership Enhancement: His appointment follows the hiring of former Slack CEO Denise Dresser as Chief Revenue Officer in December, further strengthening OpenAI's executive team and enhancing the company's leadership in the AI sector.
- Industry Impact: Landsman's experience as CEO of AgentExchange and his background in global business development at Salesforce will bring valuable industry knowledge and resources to OpenAI, positioning the company more favorably in the competitive AI market.
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- IPO Market Dynamics: AI giant Anthropic filed for a confidential IPO on Monday, marking a pivotal moment in Wall Street's AI frenzy, which is expected to attract significant investor interest and rejuvenate market activity.
- Positive Market Reaction: U.S. stocks showed mixed performance on Monday, with the Nasdaq up 0.3% and the S&P 500 up 0.1%, reflecting sustained investor confidence in tech stocks, particularly with Anthropic and SpaceX poised for upcoming IPOs.
- Analyst Insights: Matt Kennedy from Renaissance Capital noted that Anthropic's IPO will be the most scrutinized public offering in tech history, with gross margin being the critical factor that will shape market perceptions and future funding capabilities.
- Competitive Landscape Shift: Nate Elliott from Emarketer forecasts that while Claude has built a solid enterprise user base, its lack of competitiveness in the consumer market poses challenges, with only 5.4% of U.S. internet users expected to use Claude by 2026, raising questions about Anthropic's market positioning.
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- Significant Stock Surge: Salesforce shares rose 9.5% to $209.29 on Monday, driven by positive comments from Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang about the future of software stocks and the company's expansion plans in France, indicating strong market confidence in its growth prospects.
- Increased AI Investment Confidence: The announcement of an additional $2 billion investment in France by Salesforce through 2030 to establish an AI innovation hub and education programs not only underscores its commitment to the French market but also reflects confidence in its AI future, potentially enhancing its competitive edge.
- Buyback Program Indicates Confidence: Amid the 'SaaS-pocalypse', Salesforce executed a massive $25 billion accelerated share repurchase last quarter, showcasing strong confidence in its future; if it successfully transitions to a usage-based pricing model, this aggressive buyback could prove to be a wise decision.
- Market Valuation Low: With a current P/E ratio of approximately 15, the lowest in years, expectations for Salesforce's AI transformation could drive a stock rebound, especially as the increased use of AI tools may present new growth opportunities for enterprise software companies.
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- Acquisition Overview: Salesforce (CRM) has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Berlin-based content management system platform Contentful, with financial terms undisclosed, but the deal is expected to close in Q3 of Salesforce's fiscal 2027, marking a significant move in digital content management.
- Positive Market Reaction: Following the acquisition announcement, Salesforce's stock surged 10% on Monday, achieving its best single-day gain since December 2024, reflecting widespread optimism in software stocks, particularly after Nvidia's CEO made positive remarks about the software sector's outlook.
- Integration Advantages: Contentful will be natively integrated into Salesforce's Customer 360 portfolio, leveraging its API-first
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- Short-Term Trend Monitoring: Semiconductor stocks have shown strong performance recently, particularly Micron (MU), which is approximately 44% above its 50-day moving average support, indicating a short-term upward momentum; investors should monitor the 20-day moving average for risk management.
- Profit-Taking Risks: As stocks like MU rise, market focus on profit-taking intensifies, and if the 20-day moving average begins to decline, it could trigger broader market corrections, impacting overall investor sentiment.
- Opportunities in Software Stocks: With potential pullbacks in semiconductor stocks, software stocks like Salesforce (CRM) may attract capital inflows due to favorable technical setups and upward momentum, positioning them for rebounds.
- Technical Indicator Signals: The DeMARK indicators show a short-term double top in the semiconductor versus software ETF ratio, and a decisive break below the 50-day moving average would further support the relative strength of software stocks, necessitating close market monitoring by investors.
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