Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Given New $400.00 Price Target at Robert W. Baird

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its target price trimmed by Robert W. Baird from $430.00 to $400.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on CRM. TD Cowen upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. KeyCorp upgraded Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “cautious” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $365.32.

Salesforce Stock Performance

CRM opened at $294.80 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $330.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $306.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $282.12 billion, a PE ratio of 48.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.62 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Salesforce will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 3,192,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,104,786,234.99. This represents a 18.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 317,105 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were 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 directly owns 12,162,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,217,696,838.46. The trade was a 2.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock worth $381,283,706. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 14.2% in the 3rd quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 3,034 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $830,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its position in Salesforce by 1.1% in the third 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 period. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 27.4% during the third quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 512 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 44.8% during the third quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 39,743 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $10,878,000 after buying an additional 12,294 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Harvest Investment Services boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 57.2% during the third quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services now owns 9,491 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,598,000 after buying an additional 3,453 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.