Salesforce Inc. (CRM) reported third-quarter results Wednesday after the close that showed the classic earnings-season twist: a headline miss paired with numbers that actually looked pretty good once you dug in. Shares jumped nearly 5% in after-hours trading as investors focused less on the tiny revenue miss and more on what's ahead.

The Numbers That Matter: Salesforce posted third-quarter revenue of $10.26 billion, just barely missing the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. But adjusted earnings came in at $3.25 per share, crushing expectations of $2.86 per share—a beat that's hard to ignore.

Revenue climbed 9% year-over-year, and the company ended the quarter sitting on approximately $8.98 billion in cash and cash equivalents. More importantly, remaining performance obligations hit $29.4 billion, up 11% from last year. That's the backlog of contracted revenue that hasn't been recognized yet, and it's a key metric for understanding what's in the pipeline.

Benioff's Big Pitch: CEO Marc Benioff wasn't shy about touting the company's momentum, particularly around its newer AI-driven products. "Our Agentforce and Data 360 products are the momentum drivers, hitting nearly $1.4 billion in ARR — an explosive 114% year-over-year gain," Benioff said. "We now have over 9,500 paid Agentforce deals and 3.2 trillion tokens processed, underscoring our leadership in building the Agentic Enterprise and driving real outcomes."

Translation: Salesforce is betting big on AI agents and data platforms, and customers are starting to pay up for them.

Looking Ahead: The real story is in the guidance. Salesforce expects fourth-quarter revenue between $11.13 billion and $11.23 billion, well above the $10.90 billion analysts were expecting. Fourth-quarter adjusted earnings are forecast at $3.02 to $3.04 per share, right in line with the $3.04 consensus.

For the full fiscal 2026, the company raised its revenue guidance to $41.45 billion to $41.55 billion versus prior estimates of $41.25 billion. Even more impressive, Salesforce lifted its full-year adjusted earnings guidance to $11.75 to $11.77 per share, significantly above the $11.37 consensus.

Salesforce executives were scheduled to discuss the quarter further on an earnings call with investors and analysts at 5 p.m. ET Wednesday.

Stock Reaction: Salesforce shares were trading up 4.74% in after-hours at $250.03 at the time of publication Wednesday.