Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Expected to Rise, TD Cowen Analyst Says

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its price objective increased by TD Cowen from $290.00 to $340.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on CRM. Phillip Securities reiterated an “accumulate” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, August 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Loop Capital lifted their target price on Salesforce from $270.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $332.11.

Salesforce Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $336.19 on Thursday. Salesforce has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $348.86. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $292.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $268.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $321.40 billion, a PE ratio of 58.47, a PEG ratio of 2.93 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.83%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the company’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 $255,905.13. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,930 shares in the company, valued at $15,100,399.70. This represents a 1.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.90, for a total value of $1,104,180.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,912,044.90. The trade was a 3.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 133,183 shares of company stock valued at $38,314,066 in the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 816.7% in 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. Godsey & Gibb Inc. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% in 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. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently 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.