Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 1.9%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price rose 1.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $261.22 and last traded at $260.95. Approximately 4,755,729 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 9,006,645 shares. The stock had previously closed at $256.19.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus increased their target price on Salesforce from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $342.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $323.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $285.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Salesforce from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $292.79.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.9 %

The business’s 50 day moving average is $258.72 and its 200 day moving average is $276.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market cap of $252.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.06. Salesforce had a return on equity of 11.57% and a net margin of 15.30%. The firm had revenue of $9.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 9th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 7.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.75, for a total value of $1,267,350.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 105,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,936,314.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.75, for a total value of $1,267,350.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 105,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,936,314.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.14, for a total value of $4,502,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,951,166 shares in the company, valued at $3,887,162,963.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 499,152 shares of company stock worth $136,281,661 in the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 186.7% in the 1st quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Red Tortoise LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.