Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 1.5% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shot up 1.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $286.76 and last traded at $284.92. 2,158,212 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 6,369,091 shares. The stock had previously closed at $280.62.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on CRM. Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One investment 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $362.74.

Salesforce Stock Performance

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 firm has a market cap of $277.33 billion, a PE ratio of 47.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $312.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $310.95.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total transaction of $2,052,183.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,128,626.68. The trade was a 11.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total transaction of $614,040.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,575,904. The trade was a 8.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,194,689. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,007,404 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $13,432,855,000 after buying an additional 864,193 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,656,078,000 after acquiring an additional 175,035 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after acquiring an additional 177,321 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Salesforce by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $3,599,867,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.