Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 6% - Here's Why

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) dropped 6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $254.46 and last traded at $255.24. Approximately 2,622,797 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 61% from the average daily volume of 6,641,028 shares. The stock had previously closed at $271.54.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on CRM. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $247.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $361.42.

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Salesforce Stock Down 5.9 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $302.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $311.00. The company has a market capitalization of $230.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. This is a boost from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total value of $2,052,183.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,128,626.68. The trade was a 11.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336 in the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its position in Salesforce by 926.4% during the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,422,979,000 after purchasing an additional 3,841,521 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,173,564,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after purchasing an additional 2,325,156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after buying an additional 1,736,667 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.