Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Stock Price Down 2.8% on Analyst Downgrade

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s stock price was down 2.8% during mid-day trading on Monday after Bank of America lowered their price target on the stock from $325.00 to $305.00. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Salesforce traded as low as $235.59 and last traded at $236.8630. Approximately 5,184,847 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average daily volume of 7,705,109 shares. The stock had previously closed at $243.66.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, October 16th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Salesforce from $300.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 18th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Salesforce from $335.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $395.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Twenty-five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.51.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, Director David Blair Kirk bought 3,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $254.66 per share, with a total value of $865,844.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $973,819.84. The trade was a 801.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.91, for a total value of $548,797.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,905,351,282.61. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 65,372 shares of company stock worth $16,169,071. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 159.0% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,325,206 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,106,255,000 after purchasing an additional 10,636,161 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,826,049,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,039,196,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 27,361.5% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,424,169 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $933,737,000 after acquiring an additional 3,411,700 shares during the period. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth approximately $484,852,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Down 2.8%

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $246.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $257.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.43, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.27%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.56 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th were paid a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 17th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.13%.

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.