Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Marc Benioff Sells 2,250 Shares

Key Points

• Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce Inc., sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock on August 15th for a total of $543,352.50, leaving him with over 11.9 million shares still owned.
• Salesforce's stock has seen fluctuations, with a 52-week low of $226.48 and a high of $369.00, currently trading around $244.15.
• Recent quarterly results showed Salesforce reporting an EPS of $2.58, exceeding expectations and reflecting a year-over-year revenue increase of 7.6%.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.49, for a total value of $543,352.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,876,525,280.79. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

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

• 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 value of $527,940.00.
• On Monday, August 11th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.45, for a total value 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.
• On Wednesday, August 6th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.40, for a total value of $558,900.00.
• On Monday, August 4th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.42, for a total value of $567,945.00.
• On Friday, August 1st, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.94, for a total value of $566,865.00.
• On Wednesday, July 30th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.77, for a total value of $597,982.50.
• On Monday, July 28th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.11, for a total value of $605,497.50.
• On Friday, July 25th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.38, for a total value of $606,105.00.
• On Wednesday, July 23rd, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.56, for a total value of $599,760.00.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE CRM traded up $1.71 on Monday, hitting $244.15. The stock had a trading volume of 8,802,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,237,699. The business's fifty day moving average price is $260.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $274.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $226.48 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The stock has a market cap of $233.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.37.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 25.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CRM shares. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Northland Securities cut their price objective on Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $260.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Westpark Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $320.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $342.89.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AIA Group Ltd lifted its position 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 during the period. Notis McConarty Edward lifted its position in Salesforce by 71.6% during the first quarter. Notis McConarty Edward now owns 3,844 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its position in Salesforce by 1.5% during the first quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,036,482 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $274,802,000 after purchasing an additional 15,782 shares during the period. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. lifted its position in Salesforce by 43.0% during 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 purchasing an additional 31,537 shares during the period. Finally, Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt lifted its position in Salesforce by 121.9% during the first quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 355,000 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $95,222,000 after purchasing an additional 195,000 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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