JPMorgan believes that although enterprise software is experiencing slower growth due to concerns over a possible recession, Salesforce continues to be a good investment. Mark Murphy, analyst for Salesforce released information about a survey of Salesforce Partners that revealed that expectations of growth are decreasing on multiple fronts. The results did show some positives, however, Murphy stated that Salesforce stock was “too inexpensive to pass up”. Murphy said that despite what seems to be a flawed tactical setup, valuation is more depressed/defensive for CRM shares than the wider software industry at 4xCY23 revenue, 20.2xCY23 FCF. This likely undervalues this sticky $32B cash-generative, recurring revenue stream, with growing margins, and probably overvaluing it. Enterprise software has seen its growth prospects slowed by rising interest rates and fears about the economy slowing down. According to the survey, Salesforce’s Slack messaging platform was one of many areas that may see slower growth. “We expect to see downticks accumulating due to the combination of inflation & rates, Fed tapering, stimulus withdrawal, recession talk, the Russia-Ukraine war, and ongoing supply chain sluggishness affecting business confidence. Murphy stated that while the overall environment appears to have been manageable in FQ1, the recent downticks were subtle and will likely ease over the following quarters. The survey findings show that Salesforce’s cloud business and bookings remain strong. JPMorgan holds a Salesforce rating of overweight and has set a price target for Salesforce at $316. That’s more than twice what it closed on Thursday. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
