Salesforce and ServiceNow Initiate Aggressive Stock Buybacks Amid SaaS Sell-Off
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Mar 24 2026
0mins
Source: NASDAQ.COM
- Stock Buyback Program: Salesforce initiated a $50 billion stock buyback program in February 2026, recently commencing the repurchase of half that amount, reflecting management's strong confidence in the company's future and aiming to enhance shareholder value while stabilizing stock prices.
- Growth Expectations: Salesforce achieved record fourth-quarter results and management projects double-digit revenue growth for the current fiscal year, maintaining optimism despite market skepticism regarding AI's potential impact on growth.
- Strong Performance from ServiceNow: ServiceNow reported total revenue of $3.56 billion in Q4, a 20.5% year-over-year increase, and provided robust guidance for the full year 2026, indicating a positive outlook despite recent stock price declines due to the SaaS sell-off.
- AI-Driven Market Opportunities: CEO Bill McDermott emphasized that enterprise AI will be the largest driver of the multitrillion-dollar investment super cycle, making ServiceNow's AI platform increasingly relevant in the current market environment, which further boosts investor confidence.
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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: 164.550
Low
223.00
Averages
326.40
High
405.00
Current: 164.550
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.
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- AI Revenue Acceleration: Salesforce's AI-related revenue reached $3.4 billion in annual recurring revenue last quarter, reflecting over 200% year-over-year growth, which includes $1.1 billion from the Informatica acquisition, indicating nearly 100% organic growth and showcasing the company's strong momentum in AI service integration.
- Agentforce Sales Milestone: Sales from Agentforce have surpassed a $1 billion annualized run rate, climbing 205% year-over-year; while AI-related revenue remains a small portion of Salesforce's overall sales, its growth significantly contributes to incremental sales, suggesting an acceleration in overall revenue growth.
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- Share Repurchase Execution: Salesforce executed an accelerated share repurchase totaling $27 billion last quarter, reflecting the company's confidence in future growth, which may prompt the market to reassess its stock price, although investors currently remain in a wait-and-see mode.
See More
Anthropic's Upcoming IPO: A Major Focus in AI Sector
- IPO Outlook: Anthropic has confidentially filed for an IPO in the U.S., with a valuation nearing $965 billion and $65 billion raised, indicating strong performance and investor interest in the rapidly growing AI market.
- Alphabet's Strategic Investment: Alphabet has committed up to $40 billion to Anthropic, including $10 billion in cash, which is expected to enhance its competitive edge in AI infrastructure while benefiting from strong demand for its cloud services, with a backlog of $462 billion.
- Amazon's Financial Commitment: Amazon plans to invest up to $25 billion in Anthropic, further solidifying its position in the AI sector, with nearly $100 billion expected to be spent on AWS technologies, boosting its computing capacity.
- Salesforce Partnership Deepening: Salesforce's investment in Anthropic is valued at around $5 billion, and by embedding Claude models into its AI platform, it strengthens their collaboration, showcasing significant growth potential in enterprise automation.
See More
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- Massive Investment Commitment: Alphabet has committed to invest up to $40 billion in Anthropic, including $10 billion in cash at a $350 billion valuation, which will enhance Alphabet's competitive edge in the rapidly growing AI market.
- Cloud Spending Plans: Anthropic plans to spend $200 billion over the next five years on Google Cloud services and chips, indicating its heavy reliance on Alphabet's cloud computing capabilities, thereby driving growth in Alphabet's cloud business.
- Amazon's Financial Commitment: Amazon plans to invest up to $25 billion in Anthropic, having already invested $8 billion, which is expected to significantly enhance shareholder value and solidify its leadership position in the cloud computing market.
- Salesforce's Strategic Integration: Salesforce's investment in Anthropic is estimated at around $5 billion, and by integrating Claude models into its AI platform, it further strengthens its competitive advantage in the enterprise automation sector.
See More
Mixed US Stock Market with Energy Stocks Under Pressure
- Market Divergence: The S&P 500 Index fell by 0.18% and the Nasdaq 100 Index dropped by 0.83%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.69% to a new all-time high, indicating a divergence in market performance, particularly as energy stocks are pressured by plunging crude oil prices.
- Weak Housing Data: US May housing starts fell by 15.4% month-over-month to a six-year low of 1.177 million, significantly below the expected 1.430 million, while building permits also declined slightly, reflecting weakness in the real estate market that could negatively impact overall economic growth.
- Oil Price Impact on Sentiment: WTI crude oil prices dropped over 3% to a 3.25-month low due to the US-Iran agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which has eased inflation expectations; while this provides short-term support for stocks, the long-term effects remain to be seen.
- Fed Meeting Focus: The market is turning its attention to the two-day FOMC meeting, where rates are expected to remain unchanged, but the press conference led by new Chair Kevin Warsh will be crucial, as investors will look for insights on future inflation outlook and policy direction.
See More
Key Highlights from CNBC Investing Club Meeting
- Market Dynamics: The S&P 500 fell on Tuesday after three consecutive gains, reflecting market volatility, particularly following SpaceX's IPO, which briefly surpassed Amazon's market cap, indicating strong investor interest in the company.
- Intel Investment: Intel shares dropped nearly 6%, prompting Jim Cramer to increase his position, demonstrating his confidence in Intel over Nvidia in the current market environment, as he criticized Nvidia for failing to maintain its rally.
- Salesforce's Poor Performance: Salesforce's stock fell for the 11th straight session despite announcing a $3.6 billion acquisition of AI customer service platform Fin, with Jim Cramer expressing concerns about the stock's severely damaged reputation in the market.
- Rapid Trade Review: In Tuesday's rapid-fire segment, Jim mentioned stocks like Exxon Mobil and Palantir, highlighting his focus on a diversified portfolio while emphasizing the importance of receiving timely trade alerts within the CNBC Investing Club.
See More
SpaceX IPO Success with 20% Stock Surge
- SpaceX IPO Launch: SpaceX shares surged nearly 20% on their first full trading day, raising a total of $85.7 billion after underwriters exercised their greenshoe option, indicating strong market confidence in the company's growth prospects.
- Investor Participation: Ron Baron purchased $1 billion worth of SpaceX shares during the IPO, increasing his total stake to around $25 billion, although some retail investors reported not receiving as many shares as they hoped, reflecting intense market demand.
- Acquisition Announcement: SpaceX plans to acquire Anysphere for $60 billion, which will enhance its competitive edge in the artificial intelligence sector, although shares pared gains following the acquisition news, still demonstrating market recognition of its long-term strategy.
- Market Response: Following SpaceX's successful IPO, other tech companies like Alphabet and Super Micro are also seeking capital market financing, indicating a broader recovery of confidence in the tech sector's access to capital markets.
See More
