Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Up 2.4% - Should You Buy?

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) shares rose 2.4% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $270.22 and last traded at $269.62. Approximately 1,910,443 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 6,484,099 shares. The stock had previously closed at $263.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRM has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim raised shares of Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $367.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $349.08.

Salesforce Trading Up 3.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $268.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $296.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $259.49 billion, a PE ratio of 42.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.98%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 405 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total transaction of $106,251.75. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,605,922.55. This represents a 3.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,069 shares of company stock valued at $7,511,449 in the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Salesforce by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 87,913,628 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $23,592,501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383,942 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% in the 4th 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 during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $4,163,703,000 after purchasing an additional 177,321 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,752,830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,667 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,599,867,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.