Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Trading Down 1.4% Following Analyst Downgrade

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares fell 1.4% on Thursday after Loop Capital lowered their price target on the stock from $330.00 to $300.00. Loop Capital currently has a hold rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as low as $292.67 and last traded at $303.08. 7,218,852 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 12% from the average session volume of 6,463,312 shares. The stock had previously closed at $307.33.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. KeyCorp upgraded Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Macquarie cut their price target on Salesforce from $370.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “cautious” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total transaction of $141,050.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,805,936.08. The trade was a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total value 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 $15,342,415. The trade was a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock valued at $381,283,706. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CRM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its position 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 buying an additional 3,841,521 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,173,564,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $733,805,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after acquiring an additional 2,325,156 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Up 2.2 %

The company’s fifty day moving average is $330.03 and its 200-day moving average is $306.89. The stock has a market cap of $288.49 billion, a PE ratio of 49.63, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

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.