Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 0.1% – Here’s Why

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price traded down 0.1% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $323.00 and last traded at $326.18. 1,830,425 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 6,135,591 shares. The stock had previously closed at $326.54.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 price objective (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $376.84.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.8 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $335.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $304.66. The company has a market capitalization of $305.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.31.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $216,646.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,361,054.76. This represents a 0.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,117,641 shares of company stock valued at $386,408,308 over the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Calton & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter worth $204,000. Pictet North America Advisors SA acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the third quarter worth about $2,668,000. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,303 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $357,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the period. BLB&B Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 24.8% in the 3rd quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 44,537 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $12,190,000 after buying an additional 8,858 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Segment Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,538 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,611,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.