Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 2.2% Following Insider Selling

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s share price traded down 2.2% on Tuesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $301.14 and last traded at $301.49. 1,951,480 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 6,127,753 shares. The stock had previously closed at $308.32.

Specifically, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,864 shares in the company, valued at $1,805,936.08. This represents a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total transaction of $2,041,607.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,342,415. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $374.47.

Salesforce Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $292.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50 day moving average is $331.46 and its 200-day moving average is $306.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.62 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,473 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $12,194,000 after acquiring an additional 4,752 shares during the period. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc bought a new position in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,215,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,036 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $15,885,000 after acquiring an additional 6,938 shares during the period. Aljian Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares during the period. Finally, AIA Group Ltd raised its holdings in Salesforce by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,577,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962 shares during the period. 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.