Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Earns "Neutral" Rating from Macquarie

Macquarie reiterated their neutral rating on shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $370.00 price objective on the CRM provider's stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on CRM. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Cfra set a $343.00 price objective on Salesforce in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $335.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $378.86.

Salesforce Trading Down 3.9 %

NYSE:CRM traded down $13.74 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $337.23. 8,381,377 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,413,832. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $322.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm's fifty day moving average is $320.12 and its 200-day moving average is $277.44.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $18,156,600.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 134,298 shares of company stock valued at $39,903,781. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS bought a new stake in Salesforce in the third quarter valued at about $210,000. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 28.0% in the 3rd quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,274 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $898,000 after buying an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $463,000. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth about $15,894,000. Finally, Inspire Trust Co. N.A. bought a new position in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter valued at about $821,000. 80.43% of the stock is 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.