Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Given New $275.00 Price Target at DA Davidson

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its price objective lowered by DA Davidson from $300.00 to $275.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. DA Davidson currently has a neutral rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

CRM has been the topic of a number of other reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Salesforce from $405.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America decreased their target price on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $365.32.

Salesforce Stock Performance

CRM opened at $294.80 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $330.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $306.89. 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 company has a market capitalization of $282.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. Salesforce has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. Research analysts predict that Salesforce will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,805,936.08. This trade represents a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock valued at $381,283,706. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 14.2% in the third quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 3,034 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $830,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its stake in Salesforce by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 31,664 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $8,332,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 27.4% in the 3rd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 512 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $140,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in Salesforce by 44.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 39,743 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $10,878,000 after purchasing an additional 12,294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oak Harvest Investment Services increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 57.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services now owns 9,491 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,598,000 after purchasing an additional 3,453 shares during the period. 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.