Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 0.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $318.42 and last traded at $321.70. 1,871,113 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 6,073,852 shares. The stock had previously closed at $324.53.
Specifically, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total value of $2,041,607.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,342,415. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research firms recently issued reports on CRM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $360.00 to $330.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Northland Securities reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $440.00 target price (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $375.53.
Read Our Latest Report on CRM
Salesforce Stock Down 2.8 %
The stock has a market capitalization of $296.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.31. The company's 50-day moving average price is $334.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $304.76. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm'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 earned $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.
Salesforce Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 26.32%.
Institutional Trading of Salesforce
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% in the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Salesforce
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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