Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Up 3.6% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Salesforce shares rose 3.6% to a last traded price of $263.51, with trading volume up 70% from the daily average.
• Wall Street has a moderate buy consensus rating for Salesforce, with targets ranging from $221 to $430 set by various brokerages.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.416 per share, contributing to an annualized dividend yield of 0.6%.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) shares were up 3.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $267.13 and last traded at $263.51. Approximately 13,322,193 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 70% from the average daily volume of 7,818,560 shares. The stock had previously closed at $254.28.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CRM. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $375.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $221.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $395.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Twenty-five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $325.23.

Salesforce Stock Up 3.6%

The business's 50 day moving average is $244.81 and its 200-day moving average is $257.89. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $250.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.19.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The business's revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business 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. Equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th were issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 17th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 24.13%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.64, for a total transaction of $550,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,914,046,729.44. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 78,750 shares of company stock valued at $19,480,343 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Painted Porch Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 260.0% during the second quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 90 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 450.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 314.8% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

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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