Insider Selling: Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) CEO Sells 2,250 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, sold 2,250 shares at an average price of $251.66 for a total of $566,235, reducing his ownership to approximately 11.91 million shares.
• Following recent insider sales, Salesforce's stock price increased by 1.6%, reaching $256.87, with a trading volume significantly higher than its average.
• Salesforce reported earnings per share of $2.27 for the quarter, missing analysts' estimates by $0.50, while guidance for FY 2026 is set between 11.33 and 11.37 EPS.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $566,235.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,997,665,957.86. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Marc Benioff also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, August 29th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.30, for a total value of $574,425.00.
• On Wednesday, August 27th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.56, for a total transaction of $559,260.00.
• On Monday, August 25th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.57, for a total value of $557,032.50.
• On Friday, August 22nd, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.67, for a total value of $557,257.50.
• On Wednesday, August 20th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.07, for a total transaction of $553,657.50.
• On Monday, August 18th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.44, for a total value of $545,490.00.
• On Friday, August 15th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.49, for a total transaction of $543,352.50.
• On Wednesday, August 13th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.64, for a total transaction of $527,940.00.
• On Monday, August 11th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.45, for a total transaction of $532,012.50.
• On Friday, August 8th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.34, for a total value of $540,765.00.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of CRM stock traded up $4.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $256.87. 16,452,602 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,304,648. The firm has a market cap of $245.57 billion, a PE ratio of 40.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.22. The company's 50 day moving average is $256.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $268.26. Salesforce Inc. has a 1 year low of $226.48 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.77 by ($0.50). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.98%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AIA Group Ltd lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 8.0% during the first quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 32,885 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $8,825,000 after purchasing an additional 2,436 shares in the last quarter. Notis McConarty Edward lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 71.6% during the 1st quarter. Notis McConarty Edward now owns 3,844 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,032,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,036,482 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $274,802,000 after buying an additional 15,782 shares in the last quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 43.0% in the first quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 104,834 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $28,133,000 after acquiring an additional 31,537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 121.9% in the first quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 355,000 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $95,222,000 after acquiring an additional 195,000 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on CRM shares. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $404.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. DA Davidson upgraded Salesforce from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Salesforce from $370.00 to $315.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $341.50.

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.

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