Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Sells 15,000 Shares

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.03, for a total transaction of $4,530,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,936,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,907,110,216.98. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Marc Benioff also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, April 5th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.14, for a total transaction of $4,502,100.00.
• On Wednesday, April 3rd, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.42, for a total value of $4,581,300.00.
• On Monday, April 1st, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.72, for a total transaction of $4,525,800.00.
• On Wednesday, March 27th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total transaction of $4,521,750.00.
• On Monday, March 25th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.86, for a total transaction of $4,587,900.00.
• On Thursday, March 21st, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.64, for a total transaction of $4,644,600.00.
• On Tuesday, March 19th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.59, for a total transaction of $4,493,850.00.
• On Friday, March 15th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.12, for a total value of $4,441,800.00.
• On Wednesday, March 13th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.23, for a total value of $4,593,450.00.
• On Monday, March 11th, Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.97, for a total value of $4,574,550.00.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Salesforce stock traded up $0.64 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $302.37. 2,997,658 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,614,493. The stock has a market cap of $293.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $297.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $257.11. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.31 and a 12-month high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.01 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.52%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Aspect Partners LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CRM shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on Salesforce from $265.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $304.97.

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.