Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 2.7% on Analyst Downgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) fell 2.7% on Monday after Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on the stock from $425.00 to $375.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as low as $259.19 and last traded at $262.67. 1,857,690 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 6,624,547 shares. The stock had previously closed at $269.97.

Several other research analysts have also commented on CRM. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $361.42.

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Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total transaction of $167,970.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,202,758.58. The trade was a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total value of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,128,626.68. The trade was a 11.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock valued at $14,095,336. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,007,404 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $13,432,855,000 after purchasing an additional 864,193 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $6,656,078,000 after buying an additional 175,035 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after buying an additional 177,321 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,752,830,000 after buying an additional 1,736,667 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $3,599,867,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a market cap of $259.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $308.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $311.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This is a positive change from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.10%.

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.