Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 1.7% After Insider Selling

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) fell 1.7% on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $291.04 and last traded at $291.40. 748,175 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 6,270,198 shares. The stock had previously closed at $296.40.

Specifically, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $18,156,600.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.04, for a total value of $1,251,768.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 119,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,586,572.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 969 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.56, for a total value of $277,676.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CRM. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Northland Securities upgraded Salesforce from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $270.00 to $400.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Cfra set a $343.00 price target on Salesforce in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Northland Capmk raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $313.37.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.1 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $281.75 billion, a PE ratio of 51.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $273.02 and its 200 day moving average is $263.37. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 186.7% during the 1st quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Piscataqua Savings Bank grew its holdings in Salesforce by 2,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Clear Investment Research LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.