Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 0.6% Following Insider Selling

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares dropped 0.6% during trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $298.45 and last traded at $300.70. Approximately 632,322 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 5,541,161 shares. The stock had previously closed at $302.37.

Specifically, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.42, for a total value of $4,491,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,958,721 shares in the company, valued at $3,880,100,241.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total transaction of $60,201.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,869 shares in the company, valued at $799,618.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.42, for a total transaction of $4,491,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,958,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,880,100,241.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 907,375 shares of company stock worth $262,519,346 over the last quarter. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on CRM. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $260.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “sector weight” rating for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $304.97.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $290.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.28. The business’s 50-day moving average is $298.65 and its 200 day moving average is $258.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The firm had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Salesforce

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Aspect Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by 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.