Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Price Target Raised to $450.00

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its price target lifted by JMP Securities from $342.00 to $450.00 in a report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. JMP Securities currently has a market outperform rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Cfra set a $343.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $305.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wedbush upped their target price on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $336.37.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of CRM stock opened at $342.02 on Friday. Salesforce has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $348.86. The stock has a market cap of $326.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.48, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $294.61 and its 200-day moving average is $268.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 27.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 3,528 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.59, for a total transaction of $884,081.52. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,464,622.79. The trade was a 2.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,991 shares of company stock worth $43,333,238 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its holdings in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the third quarter worth $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its position in Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Company Profile

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.