Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Up 0.9% - What's Next?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 0.9% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $266.98 and last traded at $267.18. Approximately 1,163,775 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 6,786,614 shares. The stock had previously closed at $264.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CRM. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $351.37.

Salesforce Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business's 50-day moving average is $272.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $308.39. The company has a market capitalization of $257.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $167,970.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,202,758.58. The trade was a 7.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $2,089,882.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,705,195. This trade represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,051 shares of company stock worth $15,027,714. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $6,656,078,000 after purchasing an additional 175,035 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after buying an additional 177,321 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Salesforce by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after buying an additional 1,736,667 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $3,599,867,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,988,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,683,233 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.