Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 2.4% on Insider Selling

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price fell 2.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $246.25 and last traded at $246.28. 1,988,751 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 6,901,803 shares. The stock had previously closed at $252.43.

Specifically, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.06, for a total transaction of $4,170,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,913,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,590,789,261.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.75, for a total value of $1,061,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 116,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,494,155.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.06, for a total transaction of $4,170,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,913,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,590,789,261.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 439,152 shares of company stock valued at $118,115,911 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on CRM. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $285.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “sector weight” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $292.79.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a fifty day moving average of $256.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $275.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $242.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 9th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 28.78%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 186.7% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 333.3% during the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.