Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading 0.6% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shot up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $343.53 and last traded at $339.12. 1,947,464 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 6,394,578 shares. The stock had previously closed at $337.23.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $375.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Cfra set a $343.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.86.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $328.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $323.14 and its 200 day moving average is $279.01.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total value of $249,995,253.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,192,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,104,786,234.99. This represents a 18.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,189,056 shares of company stock valued at $405,093,170 over the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. McAdam LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 6.0% during the second quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 792 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $204,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. First Merchants Corp now owns 4,206 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 898 shares in the last quarter. Destination Wealth Management raised its holdings in Salesforce by 20.6% in the 2nd quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 956 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Fullcircle Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce during the second quarter worth approximately $201,000. Finally, Aries Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $229,000. 80.43% of the stock is 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.