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 stock in a transaction on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.06, for a total value of $4,170,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 12,913,721 shares in the company, valued at $3,590,789,261.26. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

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

• On Wednesday, April 17th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.83, for a total value of $4,152,450.00.
• On Friday, April 12th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.74, for a total value of $4,436,100.00.
• On Wednesday, April 10th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.42, for a total value of $4,491,300.00.
• On Monday, April 8th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.03, for a total value of $4,530,450.00.
• On Friday, April 5th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.14, for a total value of $4,502,100.00.
• On Wednesday, April 3rd, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.42, for a total value of $4,581,300.00.
• On Monday, April 1st, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.72, for a total value of $4,525,800.00.
• On Wednesday, March 27th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $4,521,750.00.
• On Monday, March 25th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.86, for a total value of $4,587,900.00.
• 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 value of $4,644,600.00.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM stock opened at $271.85 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $297.70 and a 200-day moving average of $260.97. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.57 and a 12-month high of $318.71. 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 cap of $263.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.73, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on CRM. UBS Group raised their price objective on Salesforce from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Morgan Stanley raised Salesforce from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a report on Thursday, December 21st. KeyCorp began coverage on Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on Salesforce from $265.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Salesforce from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.87.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Aspect Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently 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.