Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Price Target Raised to $340.00

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its price objective upped by Loop Capital from $270.00 to $340.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a hold rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $342.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $322.51.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $325.26 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $286.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $266.64. Salesforce has a 52 week low of $212.00 and a 52 week high of $348.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion for 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 company’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce will post 7.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.83%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % 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 Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.97, for a total transaction of $1,104,474.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,920,275.57. The trade was a 3.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 144,373 shares of company stock valued at $41,250,680 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. M&G Plc acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,178,000. First Foundation Advisors raised its holdings in Salesforce by 38.0% in the first quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 828 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. boosted its stake in Salesforce by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 4,946 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,490,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 80.9% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 49,513 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $14,912,000 after acquiring an additional 22,145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spirepoint Private Client LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter worth about $345,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.