Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

The financial leverage and debt-related ratios exhibit distinct trends over the analyzed periods. Overall, there is evidence of cautious debt management with some fluctuations that merit attention.

Debt to Equity

The debt to equity ratio remained relatively low throughout the timeline, generally under 0.2, suggesting a conservative approach to leveraging equity. Initially, the ratio declined from 0.19 in April 2019 to around 0.06 by January 2021, indicating reduced reliance on debt financing relative to equity. However, there was a noticeable spike to 0.24 in July 2021, followed by a gradual decline back to approximately 0.14 by April 2025. This pattern reflects a brief period of increased borrowing or changes in equity structure that were later reversed or stabilized.

Debt to Equity (Including Operating Lease Liability)

This ratio shows a similar trend to the plain debt to equity ratio but with consistently higher values, ranging between 0.15 and 0.38. The initial reduction from 0.38 in April 2019 to 0.13 by January 2021 highlights a reduction in total liabilities (including leases) relative to equity. A comparable spike occurred in mid-2021, reaching 0.30, before declining steadily toward 0.19 in April 2025. The inclusion of lease liabilities indicates that operating leases contribute significantly to the overall financial leverage but follow the same cyclical trend.

Debt to Capital

The debt to capital ratio maintained a lower profile, mostly between 0.06 and 0.19, demonstrating a conservative capital structure with a smaller proportion of debt to total capital. After an early decrease to around 0.06 by January 2021, there was an uptick to 0.19 in April 2021, coinciding with increases seen in other debt metrics. Subsequently, the ratio declines again and remains stable near 0.12 by the end of the period.

Debt to Capital (Including Operating Lease Liability)

This metric parallels the debt to capital ratio but with elevated values, ranging from 0.13 to 0.27. The data reflect an initial reduction from 0.27 in April 2019 to approximately 0.13 in early 2021, followed by a mid-2021 increase to around 0.23, and a gradual decrease to 0.16 by April 2025. This underscores the impact of operating leases but also suggests ongoing management of total financial obligations relative to capital.

Debt to Assets

The debt to assets ratio trends downward from 0.10 in April 2019 to about 0.04 by early 2021, indicative of decreasing debt levels relative to total asset base. Following a surge to 0.15 in April 2021, it moderates back to approximately 0.09 by the end of the period, reflecting a temporary increase in leverage against assets.

Debt to Assets (Including Operating Lease Liability)

Including operating lease liabilities, this ratio ranges from 0.09 to 0.19, generally mirroring the pattern of the regular debt to assets ratio but at higher levels. A decrease from 0.19 in April 2019 to 0.09 in early 2021 precedes a jump to 0.19 in April 2021, after which it decreases steadily toward 0.12 by April 2025, consistent with a managed reduction in total leverage relative to assets.

Financial Leverage

Financial leverage ratios fluctuate between 1.47 and 2.02, indicating moderate use of debt relative to equity. The ratio exhibits a general decline from early 2019 until late 2020, followed by a rise in early 2022. Since then, it remains relatively stable with minor fluctuations, suggesting consistent capital structure management.

In summary, the data imply prudent financial management, characterized by conservative leverage levels and responsiveness to changing conditions. The temporary increases in mid-2021 across multiple debt metrics reveal episodic higher leverage, while the general trend favors deleveraging or stability at modest levels. Including operating lease liabilities consistently raises leverage ratios, but their trends align closely with the overall debt metrics. The company appears to maintain a balanced risk profile with cautious debt utilization relative to equity, capital, and assets.

Total Debt

The total debt shows an initial decline from approximately $3.18 billion in April 2019 to about $2.68 billion by January 2020. This reduction is steady over these quarters. However, a significant increase is observed from July 2021, where debt spikes sharply to about $13.27 billion, then declines gradually over subsequent quarters, reaching approximately $8.44 billion by April 2025. This pattern suggests a considerable borrowing event around mid-2021, followed by a gradual debt reduction strategy.

Stockholders’ Equity

Stockholders’ equity demonstrates a consistent upward trend throughout the period. Starting at roughly $16.45 billion in April 2019, it increases steadily and shows a notable jump between July 2019 and October 2019, doubling to about $33.28 billion. Thereafter, equity continues to grow progressively, reaching around $61.17 billion by January 2025, with minor fluctuations observed near 2022 and 2023 but generally maintaining an upward trajectory.

Debt to Equity Ratio

The debt to equity ratio decreases from 0.19 in April 2019 to a low of approximately 0.06 in early 2021, indicating improving leverage and possibly stronger equity relative to debt. However, from April 2021, the ratio abruptly increases to 0.24, likely reflecting the sharp rise in debt during that period. After this peak, the ratio gradually declines again, stabilizing around 0.14 by April 2025. This overall pattern indicates an initial strengthening of financial stability, a period of increased leverage mid-term, followed by a partial unwinding of debt relative to equity.

The financial data reflects trends in total debt, stockholders’ equity, and the debt-to-equity ratio over a multi-year quarterly period.

Total Debt (including operating lease liability)

Total debt values exhibit a mixed trend with periods of increase and decrease. Initially, total debt maintains relative stability around the mid-6000 million level until early 2021. Subsequently, there is a sharp surge in July 2021 to over 16,000 million, followed by a decline trend towards early 2025, where values gradually reduce to approximately 11,300 million. This suggests episodes of significant financing or leverage changes, followed by deleveraging or repayment phases.

Stockholders’ Equity

Stockholders’ equity shows a general upward trajectory over the entire period. Starting near 16,000 million, it rises steadily with some acceleration from mid-2019 onward, reaching over 60,000 million by 2025. Minor fluctuations are visible but do not offset the clear growth trend, indicating increasing net assets and potentially retained earnings growth or capital infusion.

Debt to Equity Ratio (including operating lease liability)

The debt-to-equity ratio follows a downward trend over the analyzed periods, starting at around 0.38 and reducing to approximately 0.19 by early 2025. Notable short-term fluctuations exist, such as an uptick to 0.30 during mid-2021, corresponding with the peak in total debt, but the overarching pattern reflects a reduction in leverage relative to equity.

In summary, the company appears to have increased its equity base significantly while reducing the proportional level of debt relative to equity over time. The temporary increase in total debt and the debt-to-equity ratio around mid-2021 suggests episodic borrowing or lease obligations, but the subsequent steady declines indicate a focus on debt management or restructuring. The persistent growth in stockholders’ equity signals strengthening financial position and potentially improved asset accumulation or profitability reinvestment strategies.

Total Debt

The total debt initially declined steadily from April 2019 (US$3,177 million) through January 2021, reaching a low point of approximately US$2,676 million in January 2021. Following this period, there was a sharp increase in total debt, peaking at US$13,270 million in July 2021. After this peak, total debt decreased consistently, falling back to around US$8,435 million by April 2025. The data suggests a significant spike in borrowing in mid-2021 followed by a gradual deleveraging trend over the subsequent quarters.

Total Capital

Total capital displayed a generally increasing trend with some fluctuations. It rose from US$19,623 million in April 2019 to a substantial peak of US$68,790 million in April 2021. After this peak, total capital fluctuated moderately but remained within the range of approximately US$66,000 to US$69,000 million through April 2025. This pattern indicates growth in the company's capital base over the observed period, with a marked increase coinciding with the rise in debt in 2021, followed by relative stabilization.

Debt to Capital Ratio

The debt to capital ratio shows a clear U-shaped pattern. It started relatively low at 0.16 in April 2019, decreasing steadily to a minimum of 0.06 in January 2021, aligning with the period of lowest debt levels. However, in the subsequent quarters, the ratio increased sharply to 0.19 in April 2021, reflecting the notable rise in debt during this time. After this peak, the ratio gradually declined to 0.12 by April 2025, suggesting the company reduced leverage and improved capital structure during the latter part of the timeline.

Summary of Trends and Insights

Over the span of the data, the company experienced an initial phase of debt reduction and capital growth, which improved financial leverage as indicated by the declining debt to capital ratio reaching its lowest point in early 2021. This was followed by a period of increased borrowing, resulting in a temporary increase in leverage and total capital around mid-2021. Subsequently, the company engaged in deleveraging efforts, reducing debt levels and stabilizing capital, which led to a moderate decline in the debt to capital ratio through to early 2025. These dynamics point to strategic financial management with responsiveness to changing capital needs and an overarching goal of maintaining controlled leverage.

The financial data reveals significant fluctuations and trends in the debt and capital structure over the observed periods.

Total Debt (including operating lease liability)

Total debt remained relatively stable around the 5,800–6,200 million USD range from April 2019 through January 2021. However, starting in July 2021, there was a sharp increase, peaking at approximately 16,861 million USD. This spike was followed by a gradual decline, with debt levels steadily decreasing to around 11,369 million USD by April 2025, marking a notable deleveraging trend in the latter periods.

Total Capital (including operating lease liability)

Total capital values largely trended upward. Initially, capital hovered between approximately 22,000 million USD and 49,000 million USD from April 2019 to April 2021. A substantial surge occurred during mid-2021, reaching a peak near 72,381 million USD, followed by relative stability with minor fluctuations hovering around 69,000–73,000 million USD. The data towards April 2025 shows capital maintaining above 70,000 million USD, indicating sustained capitalization levels despite variations in debt.

Debt to Capital Ratio (including operating lease liability)

The debt to capital ratio provides insight into leverage trends. Initially, the ratio decreased from 0.27 in April 2019 to a low of 0.13 by January 2021, indicating reduced leverage relative to capital growth. In July 2021, coinciding with the debt spike, the ratio jumped sharply to 0.23 before gradually declining again. From October 2021 onward, the ratio stabilized between 0.16 and 0.19, reflecting a moderate leverage level maintained through to April 2025. Overall, the leverage ratio shows a pattern of reduction, spike, and subsequent normalization.

In summary, the company experienced a period of low leverage and stable debt until early 2021, followed by a significant increase in debt and capital mid-2021. Subsequently, debt levels decreased while capital remained relatively stable, leading to a decline and stabilization of the debt to capital ratio. This indicates active management of financial leverage, with an emphasis on reducing debt burdens while maintaining capital base strength in the later periods.

The analysis of the debt and asset metrics over the reported periods reveals several notable trends regarding the company's financial leverage and asset base movements.

Total Debt

Total debt remained relatively stable from April 2019 through January 2021, fluctuating slightly around the 2,600 to 3,100 million US$ range. A significant increase occurred in July 2021, when total debt rose sharply to over 13,000 million US$, followed by a decline that stabilized the debt level around 10,500 to 10,600 million US$ through January 2023. Subsequently, total debt consistently decreased, dropping below 10,000 million US$ from April 2023 onwards and reaching approximately 8,400 million US$ by April 2025.

Total Assets

Total assets experienced a growth trend from around 33,000 million US$ in April 2019 to a peak close to 99,800 million US$ by January 2024. Within this span, assets rose substantially, notably rising from below 35,000 million US$ in early 2019 to above 65,000 million US$ by January 2021 and reaching their highest values near 100,000 million US$ between January 2024 and April 2025. Despite fluctuations, the overall trajectory points to a strong asset base expansion over the observed intervals.

Debt to Assets Ratio

The debt to assets ratio showed a declining trend in the first several quarters, moving from 0.10 in April 2019 down to 0.04 by January 2021, indicating a reduction in leverage relative to asset growth. This trend reversed sharply starting July 2021, with the ratio increasing to a peak of 0.15, coinciding with the spike in total debt. From that peak, the ratio decreased steadily to values near 0.08 to 0.09 by April 2025, reflecting a gradual deleveraging and asset growth balance improvement in later periods.

In summary, the data illustrates a phase of low leverage and steady asset growth in the early periods, followed by a debt surge around mid-2021, likely tied to strategic financial activities. This was subsequently managed by decreasing debt and continued asset expansion, leading to improved financial leverage ratios by the latest reporting periods.

The financial data reveals several notable trends regarding the company's debt levels, asset base, and leverage ratios over multiple quarters.

Total Debt (including operating lease liability)

The total debt exhibited considerable fluctuations over the reported periods. Initial quarters show a relatively stable debt level between approximately $5.8 billion and $6.2 billion. However, around mid to late 2021, debt markedly increased, reaching a peak exceeding $16.8 billion. Following this peak, a gradual downward trend is observed, reducing debt levels consistently to about $11.4 billion by early 2025. This pattern suggests a phase of increased borrowing followed by active debt repayment or refinancing efforts.

Total Assets

The total assets displayed an overall ascending trend, though with some volatility. Starting near $33 billion in early 2019, assets surged significantly reaching peaks around $99 billion in early 2024 and maintaining levels close to $98-$102 billion thereafter. While minor dips are apparent, the general upward trajectory indicates expansion in asset base, possibly through investments, acquisitions, or organic growth.

Debt to Assets Ratio (including operating lease liability)

The debt-to-assets ratio reflected the impact of the aforementioned debt and asset changes. Early periods showed moderate leverage around 0.18-0.19, followed by a significant decline towards 0.09 in early 2021, coinciding with the rise in assets and stable debt. Subsequently, leverage spiked again to approximately 0.19 during late 2021, aligning with the peak in debt. From that point onward, a steady decrease occurred, with the ratio dropping below 0.12 by early 2025. This reduction in leverage suggests improving financial stability or a strategic focus on reducing relative debt levels despite asset fluctuations.

In summary, the data indicates the company experienced a phase of debt accumulation around 2021, which was later actively managed downward. Concurrently, total assets grew substantially overall, enhancing asset base size. Consequently, leverage as measured by the debt-to-assets ratio has declined in recent quarters, suggesting strengthening balance sheet metrics and potentially improved credit risk profile.

Total assets

The total assets demonstrate significant fluctuations over the observed period. Beginning around $33.2 billion in April 2019, there is a sharp increase towards October 2019, reaching nearly $50 billion. From early 2020 to early 2022, the asset base generally rises, peaking above $95 billion in January 2022. However, thereafter, assets experience periods of decline and modest recovery, with figures oscillating around the $91 billion to $102 billion range through to April 2025. This indicates phases of asset growth coupled with partial contractions, reflecting active asset management and possible strategic changes.

Stockholders’ equity

Stockholders’ equity follows a broadly upward trajectory, starting at approximately $16.4 billion in April 2019 and nearly doubling to over $33 billion by October 2019. Post that surge, equity continued to grow steadily, peaking around $60 billion by mid-2022. However, following this peak, there is a slight decline and stabilization of equity values fluctuating between $57 billion and $61 billion through to April 2025. This pattern suggests overall strengthening of the equity base with intermittent corrections or distributions affecting total equity.

Financial leverage

The financial leverage ratio exhibits variation within a relatively narrow band. Initially above 2.0 in early 2019, the ratio declines sharply to around 1.5 by October 2019, indicating reduced leverage or increased equity relative to assets. Subsequently, leverage oscillates primarily between 1.5 and 1.7, with occasional peaks around 1.69 in early 2023 and similar levels near 1.68 in early 2025. These fluctuations suggest an ongoing balance between debt and equity financing, maintaining moderate leverage throughout the years examined.

Summary

The data indicate a pattern of substantial asset and equity growth in the initial quarters, particularly from mid-2019 through early 2022, followed by periods of stabilization and moderate fluctuation. The increase in stockholders’ equity generally supports the asset expansion, while the financial leverage remains controlled, implying a conservative approach in capital structure management. This balance between asset growth and leverage suggests an emphasis on sustainable expansion with attention to financial stability.