Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) shot up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Monday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $350.00 to $360.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as high as $279.70 and last traded at $270.59. 2,376,459 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 5,651,688 shares. The stock had previously closed at $270.37.
A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $350.00 price target (up from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, April 12th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Salesforce from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. KeyCorp started coverage on Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a "sector weight" rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Salesforce from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $310.61.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Salesforce
Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce
In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at $799,618.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.94, for a total value of $4,064,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,827,327 shares in the company, valued at $3,475,435,977.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,618.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 596,595 shares of company stock valued at $175,648,172. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $2,762,331,000. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 76.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,708,615 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,607,493,000 after buying an additional 5,935,973 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 1,254.7% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,483,670 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $916,693,000 after buying an additional 3,226,512 shares during the last quarter. Coatue Management LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $564,188,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 110.3% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 3,394,912 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $893,336,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780,421 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.
Salesforce Price Performance
The company has a fifty day moving average price of $297.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $262.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.62 billion, a PE ratio of 65.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.28.
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. The firm's revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.01 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current year.
Salesforce Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.52%.
Salesforce Company Profile
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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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