Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 1% – Here’s What Happened

by · The Markets Daily

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) traded down 1% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $288.45 and last traded at $288.84. 834,909 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 6,448,527 shares. The stock had previously closed at $291.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Phillip Securities reissued an “accumulate” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, August 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Loop Capital reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 19th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, FBN Securities upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $310.74.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on CRM

Salesforce Trading Up 0.1 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $265.00 and a 200-day moving average of $263.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $282.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.38, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total value of $1,217,454.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,353,653.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total transaction of $1,217,454.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,353,653.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Maynard G. Webb, Jr. sold 9,170 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.32, for a total value of $2,533,854.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,624.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 80,612 shares of company stock worth $21,429,961 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 84,635,254 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $25,490,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008,841 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Salesforce by 26.9% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,329,925,000 after buying an additional 3,044,611 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in Salesforce by 3.0% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,116,449 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,251,592,000 after buying an additional 407,834 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2.2% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,329,687 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,141,562,000 after buying an additional 176,641 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 48.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,906,877 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,518,658,000 after acquiring an additional 1,922,674 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

About Salesforce

(Get Free Report)

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.

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