Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 2.3% – What’s Next?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) dropped 2.3% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $254.87 and last traded at $258.53. Approximately 1,847,530 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 6,756,332 shares. The stock had previously closed at $264.75.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on CRM. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. KeyCorp raised Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. TD Cowen upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $361.42.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $245.04 billion, a PE ratio of 41.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $289.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $310.46.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $298,055.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,534,090. This represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 15.0% in 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. Athena Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $236,000. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,321,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Salesforce by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,288,803 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $766,566,000 after purchasing an additional 243,008 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 15,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,252,000 after purchasing an additional 1,936 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.