Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 1.2%
Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) shares fell 1.2% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $292.10 and last traded at $301.06. 4,085,787 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 27% from the average session volume of 5,634,333 shares. The stock had previously closed at $304.74.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms have weighed in on CRM. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $304.97.
View Our Latest Research Report on Salesforce
Salesforce Price Performance
The stock’s 50-day moving average is $296.66 and its 200 day moving average is $255.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $287.32 billion, a PE ratio of 71.68, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.28.
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.01 earnings per share. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Salesforce Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 9.52%.
Insider Transactions at Salesforce
In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 293,965 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $82,310,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 293,965 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $82,310,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.59, for a total transaction of $3,878,850.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 13,866,166 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,585,651,865.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 898,175 shares of company stock worth $257,617,846 over the last 90 days. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $1,420,381,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 125,717.4% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,260,412 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,360,428,000 after purchasing an additional 10,252,257 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in Salesforce by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,708,615 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,607,493,000 after purchasing an additional 5,935,973 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 1,254.7% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,483,670 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $916,693,000 after purchasing an additional 3,226,512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Starboard Value LP acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at about $401,215,000. 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.
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