Amy E. Weaver Sells 6,221 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.00, for a total value of $2,133,803.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,474,323. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.8 %

CRM stock traded down $2.71 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $341.72. 3,469,025 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,417,507. The firm has a market capitalization of $327.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The business has a 50 day moving average of $326.36 and a 200-day moving average of $281.49. 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) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on CRM shares. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $335.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.86.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aviance Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% during the third quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $548,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Umpqua Bank grew its position in Salesforce by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 1.0% in the third quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $891,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Nvwm LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% during the third quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.