Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Price Target Raised to $375.00

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its price target increased by Wedbush from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Wedbush currently has an outperform rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report 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 report on Thursday, September 19th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $341.89.

Salesforce Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $330.01 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $315.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.39, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Salesforce has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $348.86. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $299.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $269.87.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $255,905.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,100,399.70. This represents a 1.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total value of $608,108.04. Following the sale, the insider now owns 828 shares in the company, valued at $202,702.68. This trade represents a 75.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 144,510 shares of company stock valued at $42,475,538 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its position in Salesforce by 2,400.0% in the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter worth $33,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by 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.