Amy E. Weaver Sells 5,864 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 5,864 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.77, for a total transaction of $1,611,251.28. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,428,121.87. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $270.45 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $297.28 and its 200 day moving average is $261.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $262.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.39, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $190.57 and a 12 month high of $318.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.01 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 9.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. TheStreet upgraded Salesforce from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 target price (up previously from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Salesforce from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $342.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “sector weight” rating for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.87.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 4,468 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $949,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares during the period. Roundview Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 18.8% in the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 24,037 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,104,000 after purchasing an additional 3,809 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 42.8% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 621 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce during the first quarter valued at $455,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in Salesforce by 21.3% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 860,950 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $182,797,000 after buying an additional 151,440 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Company Profile

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.