Marc Benioff Sells 2,250 Shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock

Key Points

• Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, recently sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock for a total of $551,452.50, resulting in a minor decrease in his overall ownership to 11,911,571 shares valued at approximately $2.92 billion.
• Salesforce reported strong earnings for the recent quarter, with an EPS of $2.91 beating expectations of $2.78 and a revenue of $10.24 billion, a 9.8% increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.416 per share, set to be paid on October 9th, reflecting a 0.7% yield and a payout ratio of 24.13%.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.09, for a total transaction of $551,452.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,919,406,936.39. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

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

• On Monday, September 15th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.39, for a total transaction of $545,377.50.
• On Friday, September 12th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.91, for a total transaction of $548,797.50.
• On Wednesday, September 10th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.66, for a total value of $554,985.00.
• On Monday, September 8th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.12, for a total value of $565,020.00.
• On Thursday, September 4th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.50, for a total transaction of $543,375.00.
• On Tuesday, September 2nd, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $566,235.00.
• On Friday, August 29th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.30, for a total transaction of $574,425.00.
• On Wednesday, August 27th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were 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 transaction 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 transaction of $557,257.50.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of CRM stock traded up $2.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $247.04. 11,772,214 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,963,242. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $226.48 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a market cap of $235.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company's 50-day moving average price is $251.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $263.25.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.56 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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 analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th will be given a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 17th. Salesforce's payout ratio is currently 24.13%.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Salesforce by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 88,823,481 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $24,221,275,000 after buying an additional 909,853 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Salesforce by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,260,918 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $13,452,998,000 after buying an additional 776,300 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 0.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,873,900 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $5,669,224,000 after purchasing an additional 114,504 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter worth $2,826,049,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 6.9% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,258,518 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,484,616,000 after purchasing an additional 600,386 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CRM. Stephens lowered their price target on Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Salesforce from $380.00 to $365.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $340.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $325.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $395.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $332.58.

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.

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