Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Given “Buy” Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $375.00 price target on the CRM provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on CRM. KeyCorp raised shares of Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective (up from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 price objective (up previously from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.86.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $337.49. 1,178,600 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,391,005. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $321.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $277.86. Salesforce has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $322.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.62 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Salesforce will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 942 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.78, for a total value of $249,422.76. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at $31,380,136.92. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 134,298 shares of company stock valued at $39,903,781. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 33 shares during the period. EWA LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 1.7% in the third quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $548,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Umpqua Bank grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nvwm LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.