Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Rating Reiterated by Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research reissued their outperform rating on shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $365.00 price objective on the CRM provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Argus boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a buy rating and set a $345.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and set a $350.00 target price (up from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Salesforce from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $307.87.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $270.45 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $297.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $261.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $190.57 and a 12-month high of $318.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $262.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released 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. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.01 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.52%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,618.99. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Salesforce news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.11, for a total value of $2,841,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 60,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,323,891.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,869 shares in the company, valued at $799,618.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 628,184 shares of company stock worth $184,794,698. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Red Tortoise LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Aspect Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.