Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading 0.3% Higher

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares rose 0.3% on Monday . The company traded as high as $257.76 and last traded at $255.26. Approximately 1,107,851 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 6,518,144 shares. The stock had previously closed at $254.57.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Phillip Securities reissued an “accumulate” rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, August 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $305.55.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $244.59 billion, a PE ratio of 45.49, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The business has a fifty day moving average of $253.61 and a 200 day moving average of $267.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.97, for a total value of $1,104,474.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,920,275.57. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total value of $608,108.04. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $202,702.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.97, for a total value of $1,104,474.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,920,275.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 66,576 shares of company stock worth $16,957,573. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Salesforce by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,708,615 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,607,493,000 after purchasing an additional 5,935,973 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Salesforce by 26.9% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,329,925,000 after acquiring an additional 3,044,611 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the first quarter worth about $910,220,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the first quarter worth about $874,748,000. Finally, Coatue Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $564,188,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Company Profile

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.