Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 0.4%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price fell 0.4% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $263.38 and last traded at $264.33. 1,035,946 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 6,565,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $265.38.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Salesforce from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $323.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Wedbush dropped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $291.50.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $250.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $272.49. The company has a market cap of $250.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.51, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 11.57%. The firm had revenue of $9.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 28.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.73, for a total transaction of $4,075,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,452,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,383,670,815.71. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.26, for a total transaction of $1,130,892.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 115,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,170,076.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.73, for a total value of $4,075,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,452,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,383,670,815.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 150,974 shares of company stock worth $37,516,870. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised 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 during the period. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its stake in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the 2nd 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 period. Red Tortoise LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by 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.