Pressure should boost margins

Article Excerpt

SALESFORCE INC. $155 is a hold. The company (New York symbol CRM; Manufacturing sector; Shares outstanding: 999.0 million; Market cap: $154.8 billion; No dividend paid; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.salesforce.com) is a leading provider of on-demand customer relationship management (CRM) services. Its cloud-based software lets users manage and share information regarding sales, customer service and support, marketing operations, and data analytics. Activist investing firm Starboard recently announced that it now owns a “significant,” but undisclosed, stake in the company. Salesforce’s shares are down about 40% in 2022, partly due to the negative impact of the high U.S. dollar on its overseas operations (a third of its revenue comes from international markets). Starboard feels that Salesforce has a strong brand and market share, but its profitability has lagged its competitors in the past few years. As a result, it will probably push the company to cut costs to boost its share price. Salesforce is a hold. hold. …