Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Rating Lowered by Piper Sandler

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) was downgraded by research analysts at Piper Sandler from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on CRM. FBN Securities raised shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Northland Capmk upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.74.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $288.10 on Thursday. Salesforce has a 1-year low of $193.68 and a 1-year high of $318.71. The company has a market cap of $275.42 billion, a PE ratio of 50.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $261.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $264.17.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Salesforce will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.42, for a total transaction of $1,211,364.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,181,807.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total transaction of $608,108.04. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 828 shares in the company, valued at $202,702.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.42, for a total transaction of $1,211,364.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,181,807.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 80,612 shares of company stock valued at $21,283,087 in the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 233,743 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $63,978,000 after purchasing an additional 17,350 shares during the period. CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 5,637 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,543,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 1,262 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Novare Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC now owns 33,600 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $9,197,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. 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.