Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 0.7% After Insider Selling

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares dropped 0.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $338.87 and last traded at $341.80. Approximately 1,107,690 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 5,947,475 shares. The stock had previously closed at $344.14.

Specifically, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $2,089,882.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at $15,705,195. This trade represents a 11.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total transaction of $167,970.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,202,758.58. This represents a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on CRM shares. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $368.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $377.63.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.9 %

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $338.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $299.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $332.47 billion, a PE ratio of 57.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 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 company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CRM. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.