Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Price Target Raised to $325.00 at Wedbush

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its price objective lifted by research analysts at Wedbush from $315.00 to $325.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the CRM provider’s stock. Wedbush’s target price indicates a potential upside of 17.67% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. FBN Securities upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $308.03.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE:CRM traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $276.20. 2,418,950 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,554,092. The company has a market capitalization of $264.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.29. Salesforce has a 12 month low of $193.68 and a 12 month high of $318.71. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $255.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $265.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.24, for a total transaction of $1,076,208.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 116,693 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,901,414.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $105,637.14. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.24, for a total transaction of $1,076,208.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 116,693 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,901,414.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 63,015 shares of company stock worth $16,174,717 in the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC now owns 20,768 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,302,000 after buying an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 23.4% in the 2nd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 12,464 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,204,000 after purchasing an additional 2,365 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 3,709 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $954,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 130.7% during the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 187,072 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $48,096,000 after purchasing an additional 105,972 shares in the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 950 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.