Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Up 0.2%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price traded up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $256.56 and last traded at $255.01. 1,174,797 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 6,623,900 shares. The stock had previously closed at $254.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Salesforce from $323.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Salesforce from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Salesforce from $335.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $291.50.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $254.76 billion, a PE ratio of 47.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $249.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.20.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.15 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 11.57% and a net margin of 15.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $105,637.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at $1,644,921.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.57, for a total value of $1,069,194.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,932,595.17. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $105,637.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,644,921.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 187,136 shares of company stock worth $47,935,109 over the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc grew its holdings in Salesforce by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 35,220 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $9,268,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management lifted its position in Salesforce by 66.3% in the fourth quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management now owns 1,567 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the period. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. lifted its position in Salesforce by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 7,881 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,206,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 5,951,415 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,566,055,000 after purchasing an additional 18,397 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Salesforce by 32.6% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 789,525 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $207,756,000 after purchasing an additional 194,224 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.