Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 0.4% – Time to Sell?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price traded down 0.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $332.41 and last traded at $334.33. 3,019,020 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 6,379,467 shares. The stock had previously closed at $335.74.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on CRM. KeyCorp raised shares of Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Northland Securities reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Cfra set a $343.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $378.86.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $330.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $284.67. The company has a market cap of $319.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. 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 data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.42, for a total transaction of $1,211,364.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,181,807.88. This represents a 3.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,186,017 shares of company stock valued at $405,971,793 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 135.6% during the 3rd quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.