Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Insider Sells $320,072.76 in Stock

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) insider Parker Harris sold 942 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $339.78, for a total transaction of $320,072.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 120,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,886,746.74. This trade represents a 0.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Parker Harris also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, November 5th, Parker Harris sold 3,970 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.74, for a total value of $1,178,057.80.
• On Tuesday, October 29th, Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.04, for a total value of $1,251,768.00.
• On Tuesday, October 22nd, Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.82, for a total value of $1,213,044.00.
• On Tuesday, October 15th, Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total transaction of $1,217,454.00.
• On Tuesday, October 8th, Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.42, for a total transaction of $1,211,364.00.
• On Tuesday, October 1st, Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.75, for a total transaction of $1,141,350.00.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE CRM opened at $344.43 on Thursday. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00. 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 50 day simple moving average of $325.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $281.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $329.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released 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 analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. Research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CRM. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. FBN Securities upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.86.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,215,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 13.6% in the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,036 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $15,885,000 after purchasing an additional 6,938 shares during the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 16.1% in the third quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,629,000 after purchasing an additional 1,834 shares in the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 8.9% during the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,577,000 after buying an additional 1,962 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,395,132,000 after buying an additional 257,501 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.