Salesforce is signaling a renewed offensive, aggressively pushing back against recent doubts with an ambitious long-term financial outlook. The business software giant unveiled a multiyear roadmap at its Dreamforce conference this week, projecting a compelling vision that seeks to dispel the narrative of slowing growth that has recently plagued its stock.
The market has responded positively. Salesforce shares jumped more than 4% Thursday following the announcement, fueled by the company’s projection of $60 billion in annual revenue for the fiscal year 2030, excluding the pending acquisition of Informatica. This figure surpasses the LSEG consensus estimate of $58.4 billion, demonstrating Salesforce’s confidence in its future trajectory.
Central to this optimism is Salesforce’s projection of at least 10% average annual organic revenue growth between fiscal years 2026 and 2030. Achieving this pace represents a significant challenge, as the company has struggled to maintain such growth in recent quarters. However, executives believe their strategies, including a renewed focus on core offerings and leveraging AI, will drive the necessary gains.
Beyond revenue, Salesforce also presented long-term targets for adjusted operating margins and subscription revenue growth on a constant-currency basis. The company aims to achieve a combined total of 50 for these two metrics by the end of fiscal 2030. This target aligns with the “Rule of 50,” a key benchmark used by tech investors to assess the health and performance of software companies, particularly those prioritizing growth and profitability. This ambition marks a significant improvement; activist investors began pressuring Salesforce back in 2022 when the company was not even meeting the “Rule of 40,” a less aggressive yardstick.
“We can all do the math. We’re only going to spend a couple of years in the 40s. And we’re going to rapidly move into the 50s,” CEO Marc Benioff boldly stated, underscoring the company’s commitment to enhanced financial performance.
This resurgence is critically important for Salesforce, which has been working to rebound from a nearly 30% decline in its share price this year and restore investor confidence. Throughout much of the year, concerns have lingered about the potential disruptive impact of AI on the traditional software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. Adding to the pressure were criticisms that Salesforce was overemphasizing its agentic AI offering, Agentforce, while neglecting its core business applications that are crucial for marketing, customer service, and sales teams.
While Salesforce executives have consistently defended their balanced strategy, the market remained skeptical. Some analysts, however, remain cautious despite the more optimistic guidance.
“We believe the FY30 goals are ambitious, and it is hard to see how they can accomplish them without a significant improvement to the external spend environment,” Gil Luria of D.A. Davidson wrote in an email. “With most of its businesses still decelerating, something dramatic would have to change for the company to reaccelerate growth,” Luria added, maintaining a hold-equivalent rating on the stock.
At Dreamforce, Salesforce aimed to allay these concerns by showcasing a roster of prominent clients, including Dell, Williams-Sonoma, and FedEx, each attesting to the value of Agentforce technology. Agentforce empowers customers to develop AI applications capable of autonomous actions and task completion with minimal human intervention. Salesforce utilizes a consumption-based pricing model for Agentforce, shifting away from the seat-based licenses used for its legacy applications. The AI play is key to the company’s strategy – showing how it intends to compete in a rapidly evolving technology landscape.
Analysts from both Barclays and Goldman Sachs have reiterated buy ratings on the stock in the wake of Dreamforce. Goldman Sachs, in a note to clients, highlighted the company’s progress: “Through a year of iterations since Agentforce’s initial launch in September 2024, we believe Salesforce’s latest innovations reaffirm its technical readiness to drive broader AI and agent adoption at enterprise scale.” The firm’s analysis suggests that Salesforce is positioning itself to be a leader in enterprise AI, particularly as businesses seek to automate workflows and enhance customer interactions.
The road ahead remains challenging. Salesforce must successfully execute on its strategic initiatives, navigate competitive pressures, and demonstrate sustained revenue growth and improved profitability. However, the company’s aggressive targets and positive reactions from analysts suggest a renewed sense of optimism surrounding its future prospects.
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