Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its target price lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $275.00 to $330.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Salesforce from $285.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Salesforce from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Cfra set a $343.00 price target on Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.51.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM opened at $325.28 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $310.96 billion, a PE ratio of 56.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $284.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $266.30. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $348.86.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The firm 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 27.83%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.97, for a total transaction of $1,104,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,920,275.57. This represents a 3.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 144,373 shares of company stock valued at $41,250,680 over the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its position in 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 buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.