Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading 1.1% Higher – Should You Buy?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price was up 1.1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $297.45 and last traded at $295.22. Approximately 3,175,472 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 6,772,629 shares. The stock had previously closed at $291.97.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.32.

Salesforce Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $325.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $308.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $273.65 billion, a PE ratio of 47.03, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions 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 shares were sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total value 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.00, for a total value of $2,133,803.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,474,323. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,108,793 shares of company stock valued at $383,156,227. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,473 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $12,194,000 after purchasing an additional 4,752 shares in the last quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,215,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position 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 valued at $15,885,000 after purchasing an additional 6,938 shares during the last quarter. Athena Investment Management purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $236,000. Finally, Aljian Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 16.1% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.