Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 6% – Time to Sell?

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price dropped 6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $254.46 and last traded at $255.24. Approximately 2,622,797 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average daily volume of 6,641,028 shares. The stock had previously closed at $271.54.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. TD Cowen upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities research 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $361.42.

Salesforce Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $230.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $302.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $311.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.10%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total transaction of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,861 shares in the company, valued at $15,128,626.68. This represents a 11.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Oscar Munoz purchased 3,882 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $257.28 per share, for a total transaction of $998,760.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,046,967.04. The trade was a 48.76 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its stake in Salesforce by 926.4% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,422,979,000 after acquiring an additional 3,841,521 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $1,173,564,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Salesforce by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,604,770,000 after purchasing an additional 2,325,156 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,667 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by 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.