Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 1.7% - Time to Sell?

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) fell 1.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $351.82 and last traded at $353.74. 2,303,895 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 6,043,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $359.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on CRM. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $405.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Guggenheim lowered shares of Salesforce from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $247.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $377.63.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $327.10 billion, a PE ratio of 56.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $338.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $297.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is 26.32%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total value of $249,995,253.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,192,009 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,104,786,234.99. The trade was a 18.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,108,669 shares of company stock worth $383,286,905 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 15,366 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $5,137,000 after buying an additional 1,341 shares during the last quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,791 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $599,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $208,000. Klingman & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 2,855 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $955,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prossimo Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 3,366 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,125,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is 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.