Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading 0.8% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price shot up 0.8% on Monday after Piper Sandler raised their price target on the stock from $325.00 to $395.00. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as high as $334.50 and last traded at $332.61. 1,524,578 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 6,268,755 shares. The stock had previously closed at $329.99.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CRM. Scotiabank began coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Monday, November 18th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $425.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Salesforce from $305.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup upped their price target on Salesforce from $290.00 to $368.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Bank of America upped their price target on Salesforce from $325.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $343.89.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,597,151.79. The trade was a 13.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total value of $608,108.04. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 828 shares in the company, valued at $202,702.68. This trade represents a 75.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 140,982 shares of company stock worth $41,591,457. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 13.6% during the 3rd 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 increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $6,577,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,672,000. Finally, Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. now owns 89,098 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $24,387,000 after acquiring an additional 10,656 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $316.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a fifty day moving average of $302.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $270.49.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 27.83%.

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.