Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 5.6% on Analyst Upgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price shot up 5.6% during trading on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $275.00 to $330.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as high as $340.77 and last traded at $339.93. 3,952,770 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 6,255,469 shares. The stock had previously closed at $321.95.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Wedbush raised their price objective on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $316.37.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total transaction of $608,108.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $202,702.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Salesforce news, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total transaction of $608,108.04. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $202,702.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 144,373 shares of company stock valued at $41,250,680. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CRM. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,036 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $15,885,000 after purchasing an additional 6,938 shares in the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 8.9% during the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,577,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 13.6% during the third quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. now owns 89,098 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $24,387,000 after acquiring an additional 10,656 shares during the last quarter. XN LP lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 24.2% in the second quarter. XN LP now owns 464,489 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $119,420,000 after acquiring an additional 90,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 27.5% in the third quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,999 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,284,000 after purchasing an additional 2,589 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.2 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $279.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $264.83. The company has a market capitalization of $326.19 billion, a PE ratio of 59.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly 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 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue 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 fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.83%.

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.