Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Shares Down 5.8% After Insider Selling

Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) traded down 5.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $234.62 and last traded at $241.64. 13,629,540 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 86% from the average session volume of 7,339,495 shares. The stock had previously closed at $256.45.

Specifically, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $566,235.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,997,665,957.86. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.30, for a total transaction of $574,425.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,041,024,076.30. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Salesforce from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $365.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $331.34.

Salesforce Trading Down 4.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.57 billion, a PE ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $256.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.62.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.14 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.56 earnings per share. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th will be paid a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 25.98%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 18.4% in the 2nd quarter. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC now owns 123,325 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,630,000 after acquiring an additional 19,172 shares during the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth about $115,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 15,016 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,095,000 after acquiring an additional 1,102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 12.6% in the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 87,816 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $23,947,000 after acquiring an additional 9,834 shares during the last quarter. 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.