Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 0.2%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price was up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $278.94 and last traded at $277.33. Approximately 918,412 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 5,657,781 shares. The stock had previously closed at $276.68.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $260.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $265.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.61.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.2 %

The business has a 50-day moving average of $296.91 and a 200-day moving average of $263.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $267.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.28.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.52%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.79, for a total value of $4,211,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,671,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,838,726,701.14. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 2,425 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.15, for a total value of $662,388.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,856 shares in the company, valued at $1,599,566.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.79, for a total value of $4,211,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 13,671,166 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,838,726,701.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 616,589 shares of company stock valued at $181,071,306 over the last three months. 3.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 35,220 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $9,268,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,633 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. lifted its position in Salesforce by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 7,881 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,206,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $214,000. Finally, Riversedge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

About Salesforce

Salesforce, Inc provides Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technology that brings companies and customers together worldwide. The company's service includes sales to store data, monitor leads and progress, forecast opportunities, gain insights through analytics and artificial intelligence, and deliver quotes, contracts, and invoices; and service that enables companies to deliver trusted and highly personalized customer support at scale.