Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 0.3%

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares fell 0.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $272.71 and last traded at $273.14. 1,274,276 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 6,554,277 shares. The stock had previously closed at $274.09.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $342.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Salesforce from $360.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $307.73.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a market cap of $262.86 billion, a PE ratio of 49.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a fifty day moving average of $255.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $265.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.78%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $229,434.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 51,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,072,660.02. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $105,637.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $229,434.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,072,660.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 65,033 shares of company stock worth $16,699,397. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 84,635,254 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $25,490,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008,841 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 19,561,325 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,147,402,000 after purchasing an additional 457,463 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 14,905,462 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,922,223,000 after purchasing an additional 736,986 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,329,925,000 after purchasing an additional 3,044,611 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3.0% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,116,449 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,251,592,000 after purchasing an additional 407,834 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.