Salesforce's (CRM) "Underperform" Rating Reiterated at DA Davidson

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "underperform" rating restated by research analysts at DA Davidson in a report released on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $200.00 target price on the CRM provider's stock. DA Davidson's price target suggests a potential downside of 20.18% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Guggenheim reissued a "sell" rating and issued a $247.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $355.19.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $7.18 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $250.57. 5,811,604 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,792,807. 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $276.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $308.58. Salesforce has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The firm has a market cap of $240.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.21, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $298,055.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,534,090. This represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,256 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $318,157.36. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,826 shares in the company, valued at $3,248,954.06. The trade was a 8.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 47,654 shares of company stock worth $14,124,094. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $6,656,078,000 after purchasing an additional 175,035 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after acquiring an additional 177,321 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Salesforce by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,599,867,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,988,422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,683,233 shares in the last quarter. 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.