Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 2.7% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) traded down 2.7% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $333.47 and last traded at $334.00. 682,021 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 6,271,541 shares. The stock had previously closed at $343.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price target on Salesforce from $270.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $341.89.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $298.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $269.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market cap of $316.36 billion, a PE ratio of 57.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The firm had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 27.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $255,905.13. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,100,399.70. This represents a 1.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 144,510 shares of company stock valued at $42,475,538. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 37.6% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 196,584 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $53,807,000 after purchasing an additional 53,739 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 7.4% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 43,812 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $11,992,000 after buying an additional 3,021 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter worth about $380,000. Sfmg LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 0.4% during the third quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 23,348 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $6,391,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 570.4% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 54,446 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $14,903,000 after purchasing an additional 46,324 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.