Marc Benioff Sells 15,000 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.86, for a total transaction of $4,587,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,071,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,997,946,832.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Marc Benioff also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, March 21st, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.64, for a total transaction of $4,644,600.00.
• On Tuesday, March 19th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.59, for a total transaction of $4,493,850.00.
• On Friday, March 15th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.12, for a total transaction of $4,441,800.00.
• On Wednesday, March 13th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.23, for a total transaction of $4,593,450.00.
• On Monday, March 11th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.97, for a total transaction of $4,574,550.00.
• On Wednesday, March 6th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.25, for a total transaction of $4,563,750.00.
• On Friday, March 1st, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.54, for a total transaction of $4,733,100.00.
• On Wednesday, February 28th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.36, for a total transaction of $4,490,400.00.
• On Monday, February 26th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.46, for a total transaction of $4,506,900.00.
• On Friday, February 23rd, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.39, for a total transaction of $4,400,850.00.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of CRM stock opened at $301.41 on Thursday. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.31 and a twelve month high of $318.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $293.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $251.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $292.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.76, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.28.

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

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 9.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 30th. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Mizuho reissued a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price objective (up previously from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $260.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $304.32.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,856,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,128,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 201,936 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $53,137,000 after acquiring an additional 20,317 shares during the period. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,497,000. Finally, Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,000. 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.