Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $354.00, but opened at $340.90. Salesforce shares last traded at $343.21, with a volume of 1,611,660 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 price objective (up from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $377.63.

Salesforce Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $330.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day moving average of $338.53 and a 200 day moving average of $296.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.23, for a total value of $145,115.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,888,236.38. The trade was a 7.14 % 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 Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.00, for a total value of $2,133,803.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,861 shares in the company, valued at $18,474,323. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,109,169 shares of company stock valued at $383,432,020. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nvest Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $938,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. OMC Financial Services LTD grew its holdings in Salesforce by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD now owns 11,390 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,684,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, EWA LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $548,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

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.