Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-two analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation, thirty-one have given a buy recommendation and five have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $360.76.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.4 %

CRM stock opened at $254.04 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $244.13 billion, a PE ratio of 41.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Salesforce has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $287.42 and its 200 day moving average is $310.55.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Oscar Munoz purchased 3,882 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $257.28 per share, for a total transaction of $998,760.96. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,046,967.04. This represents a 48.76 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 65.9% in the first quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 20,720 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,560,000 after purchasing an additional 8,228 shares during the period. Regatta Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Regatta Capital Group LLC now owns 6,646 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,784,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Parisi Gray Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 129.2% in the 1st quarter. Parisi Gray Wealth Management now owns 3,243 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $870,000 after buying an additional 1,828 shares during the last quarter. Panoramic Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 67.0% during the 1st quarter. Panoramic Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Midland Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 3.0% during the first quarter. Midland Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,973 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $798,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.