Benioff Executes Option, Sells 2,250 CRM Shares Under 10b5-1 Plan
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO of Salesforce, executed equity transactions on 09/16/2025 under a Rule 10b5-1 plan adopted January 9, 2025. He exercised a non-qualified stock option to acquire 2,250 shares at an exercise price of $161.50 and concurrently sold 2,250 shares in multiple open-market transactions at weighted average prices ranging approximately from $237.49 to $242.52 (broken into several weighted-average sales lines). After these trades, his direct beneficial ownership is reported in the low‑11.9 million share range, with additional indirect holdings of 107,000 shares by trust and 10,000,000 shares held through the Marc Benioff Fund LLC.
Positive
- Trades executed pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan, indicating preplanned and automated execution rather than opportunistic timing
- Option exercise and sale executed on same date, showing orderly disposal of acquired shares under the plan
- Beneficial ownership disclosure is comprehensive, including direct holdings, trust holdings, and Fund holdings
Negative
- Insider sales of 2,250 shares were reported; weighted average sale prices ranged approximately from $237.49 to $242.52
- Direct beneficial ownership modestly decreased in the reported lines (from 11,913,821 to 11,911,571 shares across the reported transactions)
Insights
TL;DR: Routine option exercise and coordinated sales under a 10b5-1 plan; no new material disclosure about company performance.
The reported activity shows a contemporaneous exercise of an in‑the‑money option and the sale of the resulting shares executed pursuant to a preexisting Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The exercise price of $161.50 is substantially below the weighted average sale prices reported (~$237–$242), indicating a gain on the exercised options for the reporting person, but this filing contains no operational or financial data about Salesforce itself. For investors, the filing primarily documents insider liquidity rather than a signal about company fundamentals.
TL;DR: Insider used an established 10b5-1 plan, providing procedural compliance and reduced signaling risk.
The disclosure confirms the trades were effected automatically under a 10b5-1 plan adopted January 9, 2025, which helps demonstrate compliance with insider trading rules and limits concerns about opportunistic timing. The filing also discloses indirect holdings via trust and an LLC, clarifying control and beneficial ownership. This is a routine compliance disclosure rather than a governance red flag.
Insider Trade Summary
| Type | Security | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | Non-qualified Stock Option (Right to Buy) | 2,250 | $0.00 | -- |
| Exercise | Common Stock | 2,250 | $161.50 | $363K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 171 | $237.901 | $41K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 1,076 | $239.304 | $257K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 766 | $239.9858 | $184K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 112 | $241.3586 | $27K |
| Sale | Common Stock | 125 | $242.0034 | $30K |
| holding | Common Stock | -- | -- | -- |
| holding | Common Stock | -- | -- | -- |
Footnotes (1)
- As indicated by the checkbox above, this transaction was effected automatically pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan adopted by the reporting person on January 9, 2025. Shares held in the reporting person's name or in the Marc R. Benioff Revocable Trust. Weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $237.4932 to $238.4030 inclusive. The reporting person undertakes to provide the issuer, any security holder of the issuer, or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission, upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the range set forth above. Weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $238.6653 to $239.6626 inclusive. The reporting person undertakes to provide the issuer, any security holder of the issuer, or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission, upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the range set forth above. Weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $239.6886 to $240.6719 inclusive. The reporting person undertakes to provide the issuer, any security holder of the issuer, or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission, upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the range set forth above. Weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $240.6993 to $241.6890 inclusive. The reporting person undertakes to provide the issuer, any security holder of the issuer, or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission, upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the range set forth above. Weighted average price. These shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $241.7762 to $242.5200 inclusive. The reporting person undertakes to provide the issuer, any security holder of the issuer, or the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission, upon request, full information regarding the number of shares sold at each separate price within the range set forth above. Shares held in the Marc Benioff Fund LLC (the "Fund"). Fund interests are held in the reporting person's name or in trust. Option vests over four years at the rate of 25% on March 22, 2020, the first anniversary of the holder's date of grant, with the balance vesting in equal monthly installments over the remaining 36 months.
