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

Key Points

• Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, sold 2,250 shares on September 22nd at an average price of $248.19, totaling approximately $558,427.50. After the sale, he still owns around 11.9 million shares of the company.
• Salesforce recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.416 per share, with a 0.7% yield, to be paid on October 9th.
• Despite recent stock performance challenges, analysts have a generally positive outlook, with a consensus target price of $332.58 for Salesforce shares.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.19, for a total transaction of $558,427.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,956,332,806.49. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

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

• On Thursday, September 18th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.09, for a total transaction of $551,452.50.
• On Monday, September 15th, Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were 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 shares were sold at an average price of $246.66, for a total transaction 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 transaction 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 stock was sold at an average price of $247.57, for a total transaction of $557,032.50.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded down $5.23 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $244.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,662,339 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,612,467. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $250.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $262.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $232.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.53, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.22. Salesforce Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $226.48 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 16.87%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 639 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Caldwell Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the second quarter worth about $4,921,000. Silicon Valley Capital Partners raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 117.6% in the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 63,040 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $17,190,000 after acquiring an additional 34,068 shares during the last quarter. NWF Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 23.3% in the second quarter. NWF Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,540 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $693,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 18.4% in the second quarter. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC now owns 123,325 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $33,630,000 after acquiring an additional 19,172 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. Northland Securities decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Bank of America cut their target price on Salesforce from $350.00 to $325.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $221.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $265.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average 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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