Salesforce Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Salesforce experienced a significant increase in call options trading, with 90,805 contracts purchased, representing an approximately 92% increase from the average volume.
• Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Salesforce to $385.00 while Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded its rating to "cautious," highlighting contrasting analyst perspectives.
• CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares for about $585,675, reducing his ownership slightly, as insiders overall sold 46,532 shares valued over $12 million in the last quarter.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors purchased 90,805 call options on the company. Thisisanincreaseofapproximately92% compared to the average volume of 47,172 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Salesforce from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $404.00 price target (up previously from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $347.50.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.30, for a total value of $585,675.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,955,566 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,112,033,829.80. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold a total of 46,532 shares of company stock valued at $12,082,694 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,826,049,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Salesforce in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,039,196,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its stake in Salesforce by 926.4% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,422,979,000 after acquiring an additional 3,841,521 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 30,456.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,801,588 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,020,194,000 after acquiring an additional 3,789,147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 27,361.5% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,424,169 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $933,737,000 after acquiring an additional 3,411,700 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

CRM stock traded up $9.72 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $243.09. 7,630,008 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,190,507. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce has a 52 week low of $226.48 and a 52 week high of $369.00. The business has a 50-day moving average of $261.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $276.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $232.39 billion, a PE ratio of 38.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

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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