Insider Selling: Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Sells 317,105 Shares of Stock

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Marc Benioff sold 317,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.78, for a total value of $109,965,671.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 12,162,457 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,217,696,838.46. This represents a 2.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $343.65 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $328.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $323.14 and a 200-day moving average of $279.01.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, FBN Securities raised Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.86.

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.