Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Up 2.3% - Here's What Happened

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) traded up 2.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $344.22 and last traded at $343.82. 2,472,110 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 6,400,171 shares. The stock had previously closed at $336.23.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Salesforce from $340.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. FBN Securities raised shares of Salesforce to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $378.86.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $322.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $278.26. The stock has a market cap of $328.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.52, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. The business's revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a 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 at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total transaction of $249,995,253.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,192,009 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,104,786,234.99. The trade was a 18.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 5,735 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.22, for a total value of $1,526,771.70. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,663 shares in the company, valued at $442,723.86. The trade was a 77.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,189,056 shares of company stock valued at $405,093,170 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CRM. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

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.