Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 1.6% After Insider Selling

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 1.6% during mid-day trading on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $331.61 and last traded at $333.11. 669,699 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 6,381,534 shares. The stock had previously closed at $338.45.

Specifically, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total transaction of $614,040.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,116 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,575,904. The trade was a 8.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.00, for a total value of $2,133,803.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,474,323. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. Macquarie reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $370.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Northland Capmk raised Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Loop Capital lifted their target price on Salesforce from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. KeyCorp raised shares of Salesforce from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $440.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $378.86.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.8 %

The company has a market cap of $321.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.22, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a fifty day moving average of $328.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $283.20. 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 (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at about $1,215,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,036 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $15,885,000 after acquiring an additional 6,938 shares in the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd lifted its stake in Salesforce by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $6,577,000 after purchasing an additional 1,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $5,395,132,000 after purchasing an additional 257,501 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.