Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 4.1%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) traded down 4.1% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $241.15 and last traded at $242.64. 1,801,639 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 6,728,625 shares. The stock had previously closed at $253.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on CRM. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $231.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Salesforce from $330.00 to $285.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Salesforce from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $292.79.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $249.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $275.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.63 billion, a PE ratio of 43.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.29. 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 (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 11.57%. The business had revenue of $9.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.78%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.66, for a total transaction of $3,249,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 12,407,327 shares in the company, valued at $2,688,171,467.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.66, for a total transaction of $3,249,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,407,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,688,171,467.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $105,637.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 279,242 shares of company stock worth $73,931,941. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 186.7% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its position in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Salesforce

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.