Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Up 1.5% on Analyst Upgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price was up 1.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Loop Capital raised their price target on the stock from $270.00 to $340.00. Loop Capital currently has a hold rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as high as $347.38 and last traded at $346.40. Approximately 1,272,164 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 6,284,661 shares. The stock had previously closed at $341.15.

Several other brokerages have also commented on CRM. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Salesforce from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Salesforce from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $320.23.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 3,970 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.74, for a total transaction of $1,178,057.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 119,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,431,349.48. This represents a 3.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 144,373 shares of company stock valued at $41,250,680 over the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Umpqua Bank grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Principal Street Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Nvwm LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% in the third quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Prentice Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 1.5% in the third quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,506 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $686,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $316.97 billion, a PE ratio of 57.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $283.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $265.84.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 27.83%.

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.