Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-one ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-nine have issued a buy recommendation and four have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $378.86.

CRM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total value of $614,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,575,904. This trade represents a 8.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total transaction of $249,995,253.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,192,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,104,786,234.99. This trade represents a 18.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,186,017 shares of company stock worth $405,971,793. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CRM. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the 2nd 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 period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 135.6% during the third quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $330.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $316.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $331.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $285.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Salesforce has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.32%.

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.