Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Up 0.8% Following Analyst Upgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shot up 0.8% during trading on Monday after Piper Sandler raised their price target on the stock from $325.00 to $395.00. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as high as $334.50 and last traded at $332.61. 1,524,578 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 6,268,755 shares. The stock had previously closed at $329.99.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on CRM. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Salesforce from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Salesforce from $315.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. BNP Paribas raised Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Cfra set a $343.00 price target on Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.89.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. This trade represents a 13.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $18,156,600.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 140,982 shares of company stock worth $41,591,457 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. bought a new stake in Salesforce during the third quarter worth $821,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 1,639.5% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 661 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $181,000 after buying an additional 623 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 37.6% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 196,584 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $53,807,000 after buying an additional 53,739 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in Salesforce by 7.4% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 43,812 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $11,992,000 after buying an additional 3,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the third quarter worth $380,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $302.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $270.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $316.26 billion, a PE ratio of 57.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.83%.

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.