Analysts Set Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Target Price at $377.63

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-one analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation, thirty have issued a buy recommendation and four have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $377.63.

CRM has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $368.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Northland Securities reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 target price (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 price target (up previously from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $333.47 on Thursday. Salesforce has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $336.73 and a 200 day moving average of $294.01. The firm has a market cap of $319.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.85, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released 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). The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.04, for a total value of $1,251,768.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 119,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,586,572.08. This represents a 3.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $235,254.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $411,694.92. This represents a 36.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,173,891 shares of company stock valued at $402,840,388. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Nvest Financial LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $938,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,684,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,457 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.