Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Earns Neutral Rating from DA Davidson

Key Points

• Salesforce's stock received a "neutral" rating from DA Davidson, with a price target of $225.00 indicating a potential downside of 8.93% from its previous close.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.91 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations, along with a revenue of $10.24 billion, representing a 9.8% year-over-year increase.
• Insider trading activity showed CEO Marc Benioff selling 2,250 shares, while institutional investors hold 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "neutral" rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at DA Davidson in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $225.00 price objective on the CRM provider's stock. DA Davidson's price target would indicate a potential downside of 8.93% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CRM. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Salesforce from $370.00 to $315.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $335.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Salesforce from $404.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Salesforce from $350.00 to $325.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Twenty-five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $326.83.

Salesforce Trading Up 4.4%

CRM stock traded up $10.48 during trading on Thursday, reaching $247.06. 9,158,952 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,677,402. The firm has a market capitalization of $235.20 billion, a PE ratio of 36.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The business's 50 day moving average price is $244.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $258.21. Salesforce has a 52-week low of $226.48 and a 52-week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 16.87%.The company had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.56 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.91, for a total transaction of $553,297.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,929,174,424.61. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 78,750 shares of company stock valued at $19,572,233. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 25,668 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $8,582,000 after acquiring an additional 3,102 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $611,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $747,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,166 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,802,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,211 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,130,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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