Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 0.6% on Insider Selling
Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report)’s share price was down 0.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $299.25 and last traded at $299.93. Approximately 722,542 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 5,579,500 shares. The stock had previously closed at $301.73.
Specifically, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.03, for a total transaction of $4,530,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,936,166 shares in the company, valued at $3,907,110,216.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 293,965 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total transaction of $82,310,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.03, for a total transaction of $4,530,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 12,936,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,907,110,216.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 903,175 shares of company stock worth $260,851,046. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 price objective (up from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $304.97.
View Our Latest Report on Salesforce
Salesforce Stock Up 0.2 %
The company has a market cap of $293.30 billion, a PE ratio of 71.99, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company’s fifty day moving average is $297.97 and its 200-day moving average is $257.79.
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.01 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.
Salesforce Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.52%.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce
Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $1,420,381,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 125,717.4% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,260,412 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,360,428,000 after acquiring an additional 10,252,257 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 76.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,708,615 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,607,493,000 after acquiring an additional 5,935,973 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 1,254.7% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,483,670 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $916,693,000 after acquiring an additional 3,226,512 shares during the period. Finally, Starboard Value LP bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $401,215,000. 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.
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