Covered, but thin — a young dividend, not yet an income payer. A 0.71% yield on a 16.31% trailing payout is amply covered and barely income: $0.44 a quarter, raised in February 2026 from $0.416 and paid Oct. 8, 2026. Salesforce only began paying in 2024, so there is no long streak to lean on — the payout takes a sixth of earnings because most cash flow still goes to buybacks and growth, which is where this card’s compounding actually lives.
Key risk: Enterprise-spending risk — software budgets and AI competition set Salesforce’s growth, and a young dividend is the first thing a growth company can freeze without breaking a decades-long promise.
Changes if: Trailing payout pushes well past 16.31% without earnings growth, or the board freezes the $0.44 rate. A freeze would confirm this is a growth card, not an income card.
- ✓Payout-coverage check: 16.31% trailing — the $1.76 indicated dividend leaves most earnings retained.
- !Yield check: 0.71% indicated — $0.44/qtr × 4 at the $248.57 close on Oct. 23, 2026. Real and covered, but thin for an income card: this is a growth holding that happens to pay.
- !Dividend growth check: Paid only since 2024, with raises from $0.40 to $0.416 in 2025 and to $0.44 in 2026. A short history — two years of increases, not a proven streak.
What this grade doesn't say: It screens the dividend only — covered, real, compounding. It says nothing about valuation or price: a well-covered payer can still be overpriced, and its price can still fall.