Macquarie Reaffirms "Neutral" Rating for Salesforce (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Macquarie has reaffirmed a "neutral" rating for Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) with a price target of $290.00, indicating a potential upside of 22.85% from the previous close.
• Salesforce's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $2.91, surpassing estimates, and a revenue of $10.24 billion, reflecting a 9.8% year-over-year increase.
• Overall, Salesforce has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $334.29, as multiple analysts have adjusted their ratings and price targets.

Macquarie reissued their neutral rating on shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $290.00 price target on the CRM provider's stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $265.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $335.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, DA Davidson raised shares of Salesforce from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, August 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $331.34.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM stock traded up $6.39 on Thursday, reaching $250.40. The company had a trading volume of 13,010,920 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,763,446. Salesforce has a 1 year low of $226.48 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The company has a market cap of $239.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.22. The company's fifty day moving average is $255.64 and its 200 day moving average is $266.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a return on equity of 13.34% and a net margin of 16.87%.The business had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.56 EPS. The business'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, research analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 17th will be issued 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 is currently 24.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total value of $578,295.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $3,061,511,978.42. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 66,077 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,773 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Painted Porch Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 260.0% during the 2nd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 90 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Salesforce during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 450.0% during the first quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

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.