Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 2.4% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Salesforce shares decreased by 2.4% during trading, closing at $239.91 after reaching a low of $237.55.
• Analysts have downgraded Salesforce's rating, with Wall Street Zen shifting from a "buy" to a "hold," and several target prices lowered, with the consensus target now at $332.58.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.416 to be paid on October 9th, which represents an annualized dividend yield of 0.7%.

Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) dropped 2.4% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $237.55 and last traded at $239.91. Approximately 8,321,539 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 9% from the average daily volume of 7,663,111 shares. The stock had previously closed at $245.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CRM shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $365.00 to $325.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $380.00 to $365.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $370.00 to $315.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Twenty-six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $332.58.

Salesforce Trading Down 2.4%

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $246.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $259.80. The company has a market cap of $228.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.87, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 16.87%.The company's revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.56 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.94, for a total value of $566,865.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,001,001,197.74. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Blair Kirk acquired 3,400 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $254.66 per share, with a total value of $865,844.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $973,819.84. This represents a 801.89% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 78,750 shares of company stock valued at $19,747,868. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce by 1.0% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 88,823,481 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $24,221,275,000 after purchasing an additional 909,853 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,260,918 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $13,452,998,000 after acquiring an additional 776,300 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,873,900 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $5,669,224,000 after acquiring an additional 114,504 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,826,049,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,258,518 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,484,616,000 after purchasing an additional 600,386 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently 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.

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