Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Reaches New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $350.00 to $400.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as high as $326.65 and last traded at $326.65, with a volume of 57759 shares. The stock had previously closed at $321.95.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on CRM. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $335.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.23, for a total value of $145,115.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,506 shares in the company, valued at $1,888,236.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 144,373 shares of company stock valued at $41,250,680 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Piscataqua Savings Bank grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Up 6.1 %

The business has a 50 day moving average of $277.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $264.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $326.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.83%.

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.