Salesforce Surges to Record After Susquehanna Upgrades

Salesforce.com Inc. (CRM) surged to a record high after Susquehanna Financial Group raised its price estimate for the shares, citing growth prospects as corporate customers do more computing tasks over the Internet.

The shares rose 4.2 percent to $165 in New York, for the highest closing price since the company’s initial public offering in June 2004. The stock extended gains for the year to 63 percent.

Salesforce, the largest maker of online customer-management software, is benefiting as businesses increasingly rely on cloud-computing to access and analyze data, Derrick Wood, an analyst at Susquehanna, wrote in a research report today. He raised his price estimate for the San Francisco-based company to $185 from $175.

“Cloud-computing remains a top priority,” Wood said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lisa Rapaport in New York at lrapaport1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net