Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 0.5% - Time to Sell?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) shares were down 0.5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $316.65 and last traded at $320.54. 1,061,224 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 6,287,018 shares. The stock had previously closed at $322.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on CRM shares. Cfra set a $343.00 price objective on Salesforce in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Northland Securities upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $270.00 to $400.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Wedbush upped their price target on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. BNP Paribas upgraded Salesforce to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered shares of Salesforce from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $325.36.

Salesforce Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $288.14 and a 200 day moving average of $266.96. The stock has a market cap of $309.28 billion, a PE ratio of 56.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 27.83%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $255,905.13. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,100,399.70. The trade was a 1.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 140,173 shares of company stock valued at $40,146,206. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 103.5% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 54,761 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $16,494,000 after buying an additional 27,850 shares during the period. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter worth approximately $324,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 31.0% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 81,100 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $24,426,000 after purchasing an additional 19,200 shares during the period. InterOcean Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 18.0% in the first quarter. InterOcean Capital Group LLC now owns 4,062 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 5.1% in the first quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,879 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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