Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Up 0% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) traded up 0% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $333.82 and last traded at $330.94. 2,376,532 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 6,227,563 shares. The stock had previously closed at $330.81.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 target price (up previously from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Salesforce from $368.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Cfra set a $343.00 price target on Salesforce in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded shares of Salesforce from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $247.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.63.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.5 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $339.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $299.87. The stock has a market cap of $311.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.59, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current 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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total value of $246,480.39. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,659 shares in the company, valued at $1,597,151.79. The trade was a 13.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $2,089,882.74. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,705,195. The trade was a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,111,420 shares of company stock valued at $384,366,700 in the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Salesforce

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.