Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 0.3% – Still a Buy?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares rose 0.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $246.44 and last traded at $244.72. Approximately 2,037,608 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 6,719,605 shares. The stock had previously closed at $243.99.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $361.42.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $249.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $295.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $311.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total transaction of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,861 shares in the company, valued at $15,128,626.68. This represents a 11.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock valued at $14,095,336. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 926.4% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,422,979,000 after buying an additional 3,841,521 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 30,456.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,801,588 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,020,194,000 after acquiring an additional 3,789,147 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,173,564,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Salesforce by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,604,770,000 after purchasing an additional 2,325,156 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.