Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Up 1.1% – Time to Buy?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) traded up 1.1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $297.45 and last traded at $295.22. 3,175,472 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 6,772,629 shares. The stock had previously closed at $291.97.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CRM shares. TD Cowen raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $375.00 to $367.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-two have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $365.32.

Salesforce Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $325.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $308.21. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $273.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total value of $249,995,253.00. Following the sale, the director now 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 317,105 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.78, for a total transaction of $109,965,671.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 12,162,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,217,696,838.46. This trade represents a 2.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,108,793 shares of company stock worth $383,156,227 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,007,404 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $13,432,855,000 after purchasing an additional 864,193 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,656,078,000 after buying an additional 175,035 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after buying an additional 177,321 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at $3,599,867,000. 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.