Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 2.5%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) dropped 2.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $269.28 and last traded at $269.37. Approximately 1,390,767 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 5,642,232 shares. The stock had previously closed at $276.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Salesforce from $265.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $260.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $365.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price objective (up previously from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, April 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $310.61.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $296.65 and its 200-day moving average is $263.37. The company has a market cap of $264.95 billion, a PE ratio of 64.14, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. The firm had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 9.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 4,096 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.15, for a total value of $1,118,822.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 49,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,463,563.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 4,096 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.15, for a total transaction of $1,118,822.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 49,290 shares in the company, valued at $13,463,563.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.79, for a total transaction of $4,211,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 13,671,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,838,726,701.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 616,589 shares of company stock valued at $181,071,306 over the last quarter. 3.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 45,789 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $13,791,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092 shares during the last quarter. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 10,933.3% during the 1st quarter. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC now owns 662 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $199,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 85.5% during the 1st quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 5,668 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,707,000 after acquiring an additional 2,613 shares in the last quarter. Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 4.1% in the first quarter. Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC now owns 40,989 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $12,345,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 16.4% during the first quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. 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.