Salesforce Stock Drops After Insider Sales

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) saw its share price drop by 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday, following the sale of shares by company insiders. The stock reached a low of $341.03 before last trading at $342.40. During this trading session, 506,766 shares changed hands, marking a significant decline of about 92% compared to the average session volume of 6,405,269 shares. Previously, Salesforce's stock had closed at $344.43.

In a specific transaction, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of Salesforce on Tuesday, December 24th, at an average price of $343.00. This sale amounted to a total value of approximately $2,133,803. Following this transaction, Weaver owns 53,861 shares of Salesforce, which are valued at around $18,474,323, representing a 10.35% decrease in her ownership.

Additionally, COO Brian Millham sold 16,487 shares on Monday, December 23rd, at an average price of $340.68, totaling around $5,616,791.16. After this sale, he retains just 1,662 shares of the company, valued at approximately $566,210. This indicates a substantial 90.84% decline in his ownership. Another insider, Parker Harris, also sold 942 shares on December 23rd at an average price of $339.78, resulting in a total transaction value of about $320,072.76. Following this sale, Harris now holds 120,333 shares valued at $40,886,746.74, a 0.78% decrease in his stake.

Analyst Ratings

In recent comments, several equity analysts have shared their thoughts about Salesforce. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating with a price target of $375.00 on December 18th. TD Cowen raised their target price for Salesforce from $290.00 to $340.00, rating it as a "hold". Canaccord Genuity Group also raised its price target to $415.00 while maintaining a "buy" rating on December 4th. Phillip Securities has an "accumulate" rating with a target price of $305.00 established on August 30th. Jefferies Financial Group set a higher target price of $425.00 on December 4th, also assigning a "buy" rating. Currently, eight analysts have rated Salesforce stock as a hold, thirty have given it a buy rating, and four have issued a strong buy rating. According to MarketBeat, the average rating stands at "Moderate Buy", with a price target of $378.86.

Salesforce's Financial Overview

Salesforce boasts a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11, and a current ratio of 1.11. The company's 50-day moving average is $328.28, while the 200-day moving average is $282.57. The market capitalization of Salesforce is approximately $323.90 billion, with a P/E ratio of 55.67 and a P/E/G ratio of 3.21, alongside a beta of 1.30.

In its last quarterly earnings report on December 3rd, Salesforce reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.41, falling short of analysts' expectations of $2.44 by $0.03. The company has a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. Salesforce reported revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, surpassing the expected figure of $9.35 billion. Compared to the same period last year, the revenue increased by 8.3%. Analysts predict that Salesforce will report an EPS of 7.48 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Announcement

Recently, Salesforce announced a quarterly dividend, set to be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders recorded on Wednesday, December 18th, will receive a dividend of $0.40, with the ex-dividend date also on December 18th. This translates to an annualized dividend of $1.60 with a yield of 0.47%. The company's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Institutional Activity

Various hedge funds have recently adjusted their positions in Salesforce. Notable activity includes Veritas Asset Management LLP acquiring a new position valued at approximately $733,805,000 during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Salesforce by 48.3% in the second quarter, now holding 5,906,877 shares worth about $1,518,658,000. KBC Group NV significantly increased its shares by 171.2% in the third quarter, owning 1,634,834 shares valued at $447,470,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 80.43% of Salesforce’s stock.

About Salesforce

Salesforce, Inc. specializes in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technology that enhances connections between companies and customers across the globe. Its services encompass various aspects including sales for data storage, lead monitoring, opportunity forecasting, analytics insights, and contract management, along with services that enable personalized customer support at scale.

Salesforce, Stock, Trading