Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Up 0.5% – Here’s Why

by · The Cerbat Gem

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) shot up 0.5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $256.23 and last traded at $255.93. 1,265,192 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 6,799,350 shares. The stock had previously closed at $254.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $360.76.

Check Out Our Latest Report on CRM

Salesforce Trading Up 0.3 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $245.32 billion, a PE ratio of 41.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $287.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $310.55.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. 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 dividend yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,805,936.08. This represents a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 926.4% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,422,979,000 after purchasing an additional 3,841,521 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 30,456.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,801,588 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,020,194,000 after purchasing an additional 3,789,147 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $1,173,564,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Salesforce

(Get Free Report)

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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