Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 6% – What’s Next?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares fell 6% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $254.46 and last traded at $255.24. 2,622,797 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 6,641,028 shares. The stock had previously closed at $271.54.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CRM shares. KeyCorp upgraded Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $361.42.

Salesforce Trading Down 6.1 %

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $305.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $311.50. The stock has a market cap of $245.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 652 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 121,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,361,054.76. This represents a 0.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,473 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $12,194,000 after acquiring an additional 4,752 shares during the last quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc bought a new stake in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,215,000. Athena Investment Management acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,321,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,395,132,000 after buying an additional 257,501 shares during the last quarter. 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.