Analysts Love Salesforce Inventory and Are Elevating Their Worth Targets

Analysts have been elevating their worth targets on Salesforce, Inc. (CRM) inventory. That is regardless of CRM inventory having been flat over the past month. Among the finest performs right here is to promote quick out-of-the-money places for earnings.

CRM is up at present to $257.46 in morning buying and selling on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. It closed at $260.57 on Dec. 5, 2025. So, it has been roughly flat over the past month.

I mentioned Salesforce’s inventory worth in a Dec. 5, 2025, Barchart article, “Salesforce Generates Robust Free Money Circulate – CRM Might Be 23% Too Low-cost.”

I confirmed how CRM could possibly be value $321 per share based mostly on its robust free money circulation (FCF) and FCF margins. Furthermore, since then, analysts have raised their worth targets (PTs).

For instance, 58 analysts surveyed by Yahoo! Finance have raised their PTs to $330.06 from $327.38 a month in the past. Equally, Barchart’s imply survey PT has risen from $328.52 to $331.71.

As well as, AnaChart.com’s survey of 35 analysts has a better common PT now of $300.06, in comparison with $283.36 a month in the past.

The underside line is that the typical worth goal, together with mine, is now larger at $320.71. That’s virtually +25% larger than at present’s worth.

However what if it takes some time for CRM to hit this PT? One approach to play that is to set a doubtlessly decrease buy-in level and receives a commission whereas ready.

That’s what occurs while you promote quick out-of-the-money (OTM) put choices in close by expiry intervals.

For instance, final month I demonstrated that shorting (i.e., “Promote to Open”) the $245.00 strike worth put possibility expiring this Friday, January 9, 2026, would yield an earnings of $3.75, or $375.00, for an funding of $24,500 over the month.

That supplied a direct yield of 1.53% (i.e., $375/$24,500) for a strike worth that was 5.57% under the buying and selling worth (i.e., out-of-the-money or OTM).

Right now, that premium is all the way down to $0.39, or $39 per put contract. In different phrases, an investor can enter an order to “Purchase to Shut” this contract and guide a $336 revenue.

Alternatively, assuming CRM stays over $245.00 by Friday, the investor can let the choice expire nugatory. That manner, the entire $375 might be booked as revenue over the past month.

Furthermore, this commerce might be repeated now. For instance, the Feb. 6, 2026, expiry put possibility on the $245.00 strike worth now has a $3.80 midpoint premium.

That gives a direct yield of 1.55% yield to a short-seller of this put contract (i.e., $380/$24,500). That’s just like final month, and the gap from the spot worth can be about 5% out-of-the-money (OTM).

Word that there’s a few 26.4% probability that CRM may fall to $245 based mostly on the -0.2636 delta ratio. That’s based mostly on the historic volatility of CRM.

So, extra risk-averse buyers could wish to quick the $240.00 put possibility. That has a decrease delta ratio (lower than 18%) but in addition a decrease one-month short-put yield of 0.89% (i.e., $2.14/$240).

Nevertheless, doing a 50/50 combine of those two would supply a mean yield of 1.22%, though this is able to contain extra capital outlay.

Nevertheless, the underside line is that an investor can set a decrease potential breakeven buy-in level and receives a commission whereas ready.

For instance, the $245.00 gives a breakeven of $241.20 (i.e., $245-$3.80). That’s 6.60% under at present’s worth and gives a a lot decrease potential buy-in level for each new and present buyers.

And remember, frequently repeating this short-put play every month builds earnings. Some buyers can use that earnings to assist pay for in-the-money (ITM) name choices. That manner the investor can achieve a leveraged upside in CRM inventory as properly.

On the date of publication, Mark R. Hake, CFA didn’t have (both immediately or not directly) positions in any of the securities talked about on this article. All data and knowledge on this article is solely for informational functions. This text was initially revealed on Barchart.com