Investors Purchase Large Volume of Salesforce Call Options (NYSE:CRM)

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 75,813 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 74% compared to the average daily volume of 43,481 call options.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. The trade was a 13.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 942 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.78, for a total transaction of $249,422.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,380,136.92. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 134,298 shares of company stock valued at $39,903,781 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,215,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,036 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $15,885,000 after acquiring an additional 6,938 shares in the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $6,577,000 after purchasing an additional 1,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,395,132,000 after purchasing an additional 257,501 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Salesforce from $368.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $335.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Macquarie started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $370.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Eight investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.24.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded down $6.22 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $351.01. The stock had a trading volume of 6,888,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,405,638. The company has a market cap of $335.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.73, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $318.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $276.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

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.