Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Rating Increased to Outperform at Northland Securities

Northland Securities upgraded shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $400.00 target price on the CRM provider's stock, up from their previous target price of $270.00.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI reissued an outperform rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Salesforce from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $310.74.

Salesforce Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $8.61 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $279.48. 7,570,234 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,559,659. The stock has a market capitalization of $270.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.30. 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 company's 50 day moving average price is $256.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $264.65. Salesforce has a 12 month low of $193.68 and a 12 month high of $318.71.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. Salesforce's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 28.78%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, Director Maynard G. Webb, Jr. sold 9,170 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.32, for a total transaction of $2,533,854.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,363 shares in the company, valued at $376,624.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.75, for a total transaction of $1,141,350.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 118,514 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,206,179.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Maynard G. Webb, Jr. sold 9,170 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.32, for a total value of $2,533,854.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $376,624.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 72,185 shares of company stock worth $18,773,713. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holdings in Salesforce by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 28,142 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $7,703,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. Weybosset Research & Management LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 7.0% in the third quarter. Weybosset Research & Management LLC now owns 1,075 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $294,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 28.6% during the third quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,044 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Doliver Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 5.0% during the third quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 6,076 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,663,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park National Corp OH increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 7,453.1% in the third quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 120,850 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $33,078,000 after buying an additional 119,250 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.