Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 1.3% on Insider Selling

Key Points

• Salesforce's share price declined by 1.3% after insider selling by CEO Marc Benioff, who sold 6,750 shares over multiple transactions in October, lowering his ownership by 0.02% each time.
• Oppenheimer and Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price targets for Salesforce shares, with Oppenheimer setting a new target of $315 and Stifel Nicolaus adjusting theirs to $300, although the overall analyst consensus remains a "Moderate Buy".
• Salesforce recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.416, translating into an annualized yield of 0.7%, with a dividend payout ratio of 24.13%.

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 1.3% during trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $235.90 and last traded at $236.60. 7,741,014 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 7,674,442 shares. The stock had previously closed at $239.77.

Specifically, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.60, for a total transaction of $548,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,901,658,695.60. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.91, for a total transaction of $553,297.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,929,174,424.61. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.79, for a total value of $539,527.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,856,275,610.09. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $370.00 to $315.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Salesforce from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $395.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Citigroup raised their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Salesforce from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Twenty-five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $328.22.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.3%

The stock has a market cap of $225.24 billion, a PE ratio of 34.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $244.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $258.36.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 16.87%.The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th were issued a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 17th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 24.13%.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Painted Porch Advisors LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 260.0% in the 2nd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 90 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 450.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 314.8% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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