Salesforce’s (CRM) “Outperform” Rating Reiterated at Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer reissued their outperform rating on shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) in a report published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $330.00 price objective on the CRM provider’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $300.00.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $335.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Loop Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 19th. 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 MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $312.51.

Salesforce Stock Performance

CRM opened at $290.46 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $269.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $263.05. The company has a market capitalization of $281.46 billion, a PE ratio of 52.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce has a 1 year low of $193.68 and a 1 year high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 28.78%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.28, for a total transaction of $1,080,576.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares in the company, valued at $30,251,239.68. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 2,934 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.95, for a total transaction of $771,495.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $977,122.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.28, for a total value of $1,080,576.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,251,239.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 87,781 shares of company stock worth $23,696,593 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 186.7% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% in the second 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. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Red Tortoise LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.