Scotiabank Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its target price reduced by equities research analysts at Scotiabank from $400.00 to $345.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector outperform” rating on the CRM provider’s stock. Scotiabank’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 23.71% from the company’s previous close.

CRM has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup reiterated a “cautious” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. TD Cowen raised Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $364.14.

Salesforce Stock Performance

NYSE CRM traded down $0.52 during trading on Monday, hitting $278.89. 1,326,011 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,016,761. The business has a 50 day moving average of $318.03 and a 200-day moving average of $309.36. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $268.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.92, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total transaction of $1,872,521.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,071,750. The trade was a 11.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 317,105 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.78, for a total transaction of $109,965,671.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,162,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,217,696,838.46. The trade was a 2.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,108,793 shares of company stock valued at $383,156,227. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its holdings in Salesforce by 926.4% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,422,979,000 after buying an additional 3,841,521 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,173,564,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after buying an additional 2,325,156 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Salesforce by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.