Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading 3% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shot up 3% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $359.97 and last traded at $359.24. 2,168,485 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 6,391,185 shares. The stock had previously closed at $348.82.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Northland Securities reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $377.24.

Salesforce Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $316.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $275.00. The firm has a market cap of $339.07 billion, a PE ratio of 58.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th 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 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. This trade represents a 13.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.04, for a total transaction of $1,079,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,223,020.24. This trade represents a 3.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 138,498 shares of company stock valued at $40,983,349 in the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 1.7% in the third quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $548,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Umpqua Bank grew its stake in Salesforce by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,110,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $891,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Nvwm LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. 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.