Financial Sector Earnings - The upcoming week features significant earnings reports from major Canadian financial institutions, including Royal Bank of Canada on Wednesday and Toronto Dominion Bank, Bank of Montreal, and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce on Thursday [1] - The earnings reports from these banks are expected to provide insights into the Canadian financial sector's performance and outlook [1] Software Sector Earnings - The week is also packed with software earnings reports, with CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. and Marvell Technology Inc. reporting after market close on Tuesday, followed by Salesforce Inc. and Snowflake Inc. on Wednesday [1] - These earnings are anticipated to reflect trends and developments in the software industry, which may influence investor sentiment and market dynamics [1]

Group 1 - The article highlights that Salesforce, despite being a significant player with a market cap above $200 billion, has lost favor among investors this year, contrasting with the trend of other major tech companies [1] - The author emphasizes the importance of sustained profitability, characterized by strong margins, stable and expanding free cash flow, and high returns on invested capital, as a more reliable driver of returns than valuation alone [1] - The investment strategy focuses on undervalued growth stocks and high-quality dividend growers within the U.S. and European equities markets [1] Group 2 - The author manages a portfolio publicly on eToro, where they have qualified as a Popular Investor, allowing others to replicate their real-time investment decisions [1] - The interdisciplinary background of the author, which includes Economics, Classical Philology, Philosophy, and Theology, enhances both quantitative analysis and the interpretation of market narratives [1] - The investment philosophy aims to ensure financial freedom for the author's family, emphasizing the importance of having enough assets to pursue desired work rather than avoiding it [1]

Core Insights - Concerns about AI replacing human workers have escalated, with a recent MIT study indicating that AI can replace 11.7% of the US labor market [1] Company Actions - **HP**: Plans to cut 4,000 to 6,000 jobs by the end of 2028, aiming to save around $1 billion through AI initiatives and workforce reductions [6][7] - **IBM**: Has replaced hundreds of HR employees with AI and plans to cut thousands of workers by Q4 2025, while also shifting focus to hire more in AI and quantum roles [10][11][12] - **Amazon**: Announced 14,000 job cuts, with CEO stating the layoffs were not primarily driven by AI but rather cultural reasons [15][16] - **Salesforce**: Reduced customer support headcount from 9,000 to 5,000 due to AI agents, while successfully redeploying hundreds of employees to other areas [20][21] - **Klarna**: CEO indicated the company could operate with half its current staff, with AI handling the workload equivalent to 853 full-time agents, saving an estimated $58 million annually [25][26] - **Fiverr**: Slashed approximately 30% of its workforce, affecting about 250 employees, to become a leaner "AI-first company" [31][32] Industry Trends - A World Economic Forum survey found that 41% of companies globally expect to reduce their workforces over the next five years due to AI, while tech jobs in big data, fintech, and AI are projected to double by 2030 [3]

Shares of Salesforce Inc. ( NYSE: CRM )Â lost 10.69% over the past month after gaining 4.89% the month prior. ...

Core Insights - The global digital sales on Thanksgiving Day are projected to reach $36 billion, with the U.S. digital sales expected to hit $8.6 billion [1] Group 1: Sales Growth - Global spending has increased by 7.9% year-over-year, totaling $13.1 billion, while U.S. spending has grown by 5.8%, reaching $2.6 billion [1] Group 2: Mobile Device Impact - Mobile devices are driving the majority of digital sales, accounting for 80% of traffic and 75% of orders in the U.S. [1] Group 3: AI Influence - The conversion rate from traffic generated by third-party AI agents is significantly higher than that from social media, with global AI traffic converting to sales at six times the efficiency of regular traffic, and in the U.S. at three times the normal digital traffic conversion rate [1]

Core Insights - Online sales in the U.S. during the Thanksgiving holiday are projected to increase by 6% year-over-year, reaching a total of $8.6 billion according to Salesforce data [1] Group 1: Sales Performance - The expected rise in online sales indicates a strong consumer demand during the holiday season [1] - The $8.6 billion forecast reflects a significant contribution to the overall retail performance during Thanksgiving [1]

Core Insights - Analysts project Salesforce.com (CRM) will report quarterly earnings of $2.85 per share, an 18.3% increase year over year, with revenues expected to reach $10.26 billion, reflecting an 8.7% increase from the same quarter last year [1] Earnings Estimates - Revisions to earnings estimates are crucial indicators for predicting investor actions regarding the stock, with empirical research showing a strong correlation between earnings estimate trends and short-term stock performance [2] Key Metrics Overview - Analysts estimate 'Revenue- Professional services and other' will reach $541.51 million, indicating a -4.2% year-over-year change [4] - 'Revenue- Subscription and support' is projected at $9.72 billion, reflecting a +9.5% year-over-year change [4] - 'Revenue- Subscription and support- Service' is expected to be $2.50 billion, showing a +9.1% year-over-year change [4] - 'Revenue- Subscription and support- Marketing and Commerce' is estimated at $1.39 billion, indicating a +4.2% change from the year-ago quarter [5] - 'Revenue- Subscription and support- Platform and Other' is projected to reach $2.07 billion, reflecting a +13.4% year-over-year change [5] - 'Revenue- Subscription and support- Integration and Analytics' is expected to be $1.47 billion, indicating an +11.6% change from the prior-year quarter [6] - 'Geographic Revenue- Americas' is projected at $7.18 billion, reflecting a +15.5% year-over-year change [6] - 'Geographic Revenue- Asia Pacific' is estimated at $1.02 billion, indicating a +2.7% change from the prior-year quarter [7] - 'Geographic Revenue- Europe' is expected to reach $2.05 billion, reflecting a -7.8% change from the year-ago quarter [7] Remaining Performance Obligation (RPO) - The consensus estimate for 'Remaining performance obligation (RPO) - Current' is $29.04 billion, compared to $26.40 billion in the same quarter last year [8] - 'Remaining performance obligation (RPO) - Total' is projected at $59.05 billion, compared to $53.10 billion in the same quarter last year [8] - 'Remaining performance obligation (RPO) - Noncurrent' is expected to be $30.01 billion, compared to $26.70 billion from the previous year [9] Stock Performance - Salesforce.com shares have experienced a -9.3% change in the past month, contrasting with a +0.4% move of the Zacks S&P 500 composite [9]

Core Insights - Salesforce (CRM) is set to release its third-quarter fiscal 2026 results on December 3, with expected revenues between $10.24 billion and $10.29 billion, indicating an 8.7% increase year-over-year [1][9] - The company anticipates non-GAAP earnings per share (EPS) in the range of $2.84 to $2.86, reflecting an 18.3% increase from the previous year [2][9] Revenue and Earnings Estimates - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter revenues is $10.26 billion, aligning closely with Salesforce's expectations [1][9] - The consensus estimate for non-GAAP EPS has remained stable at $2.85 over the past 60 days [2] Performance History - Salesforce has beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, with an average surprise of 3.2% [3] Factors Influencing Q3 Results - The company is well-positioned for strong results due to its focus on digital transformation and cloud solutions, which align with global business needs [6] - Demand for generative AI-enabled cloud solutions has been a significant growth driver, enhancing customer engagement and competitive positioning [7] - Salesforce's expansion in key geographic markets and the public sector has unlocked new growth opportunities [8] Strategic Acquisitions - Recent acquisitions, including Waii, Convergence.ai, and Zoomin, have enhanced Salesforce's capabilities and diversified its revenue base, likely boosting subscription revenues [10] - Key cloud service revenue estimates for Q3 include $2.3 billion from Sales, $2.49 billion from Service, and $2.07 billion from Platform & Other [11] Cost Restructuring Initiatives - Ongoing cost restructuring is expected to improve profitability, with a non-GAAP operating margin of 34.3% in Q2, up 60 basis points [12] Stock Performance and Valuation - Year-to-date, Salesforce shares have declined by 31.7%, underperforming the Zacks Computer – Software industry, which has risen by 6.6% [13] - The stock is currently trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 4.92, compared to the industry average of 7.39 [15] Competitive Position - Salesforce maintains its leadership in the customer relationship management industry, consistently outperforming competitors like Microsoft, Oracle, and SAP [18] - Strategic acquisitions, such as the $27.7 billion acquisition of Slack, have significantly enhanced its market position [19] AI Initiatives - The introduction of Einstein GPT and the expansion of AI functionalities across its ecosystem have solidified Salesforce's competitive edge in the market [20] Conclusion - Despite potential near-term challenges from softening IT spending, Salesforce's leadership in CRM and aggressive AI expansion provide a solid foundation for sustained growth [22]

Market Overview - The U.S. stock market is closed on November 27, 2025, for Thanksgiving, with trading resuming on November 28, 2025, in a shortened session [1] - The latest market data reflects performance from November 26, 2025, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 314.67 points (0.6679%) to reach 47,427.12 [1] Market Drivers - Investor optimism regarding potential interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve in December and renewed enthusiasm for the artificial intelligence (AI) sector drove the market rally [2] - This positive sentiment contributed to a four-day winning streak for benchmark indices, helping to recover earlier losses in November [2] - Global markets also benefited from the anticipation of rate cuts, despite the U.S. markets preparing for the holiday closure [2] Stock Performance - Boeing (BA) led the Dow components with a gain of 2.46%, reaching $186.92 [3] - Walmart (WMT) increased by 2.07% to $109.10, and Microsoft (MSFT) rose by 2.04% to $485.50 [3] - Financial institutions performed well, with Goldman Sachs (GS) climbing 1.71% to $816.01 and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) up 1.64% to $307.64 [3] - Conversely, Salesforce (CRM) was the biggest laggard, down 2.51% to $228.15, followed by Merck (MRK) down 0.73% to $104.63, and Honeywell (HON) decreasing 0.43% to $189.99 [3]

Market Overview - The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed on November 26th, 2025, with a gain of 314.67 points (0.6679%), reaching 47427.12, driven by investor optimism regarding a potential Federal Reserve interest rate cut in December [1] - Despite mixed economic data, the sentiment around monetary policy easing contributed to a broader rally in U.S. equities ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday [1] Contributing Factors - Expectations of a rate cut, a sustained AI-led rally, and solid corporate earnings reports were key contributors to the market's strong performance [2] - Technology companies experienced renewed interest, extending a multi-day winning streak for major indexes, with advancers significantly outnumbering decliners on the NYSE [2] Company Performance - Boeing (BA) led the Dow's components with a gain of +2.58%, followed by Walmart (WMT) at +2.29% and Microsoft (MSFT) at +1.96% [3] - Goldman Sachs (GS) and Home Depot (HD) also saw increases of +1.66% and +1.51%, respectively [3] - Salesforce (CRM) was the biggest laggard, dropping -2.68%, potentially due to company-specific news or sector rotation, with IBM (IBM) and Merck & Co. (MRK) also declining by -0.39% and -0.24% [3]