Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-three ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-three have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $310.61.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CRM shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective (up previously from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, April 12th. Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price objective (up previously from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $275.86 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce has a twelve month low of $190.76 and a twelve month high of $318.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $267.58 billion, a PE ratio of 65.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $295.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $265.20.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. The business’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce will post 7.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 7,075 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.32, for a total value of $2,188,439.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 38,483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,903,561.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 7,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.32, for a total value of $2,188,439.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,903,561.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 2,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.15, for a total transaction of $662,388.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,599,566.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 610,793 shares of company stock worth $179,197,018 in the last quarter. 3.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 333.3% in the 4th quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Red Tortoise LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.