Salesforce IPO set to spring into action

Software firm Salesforce.com plans to offer its shares for public trading as early as March, according to a source familiar with the company's plans.

The San Francisco company has also chosen a stock symbol, according to a filing on Tuesday with the Security and Exchange Commission. Salesforce said its shares will be traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the stock symbol CRM, which is also an acronym for customer relationship management, the software niche in which Salesforce competes.

Salesforce executives, including chief executive Marc Benioff, will be in New York at the end of February for a marketing event and benefit concert that the company is co-sponsoring. While in town, the executives plan to meet with institutional investors to promote the company and gauge investor interest in its initial public offering. Feedback from institutional investors will help Salesforce price its shares. "That will sort of be the kickoff for marketing the deal," said the source, who requested anonymity.

The company expects the process of pricing its shares to move quickly, clearing the way for an IPO as early as March, the source said. However, delays are always possible, the source added.

A Salesforce representative said she had no comment on the company's IPO plans.

Alorie Gilbert writes for News.com