Liberty One Investment Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Liberty One Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 15.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,126 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 571 shares during the period. Liberty One Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Annapolis Financial Services LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 135.6% in the 3rd quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.5 %

Salesforce stock opened at $324.77 on Friday. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $337.31 and a 200 day moving average of $291.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $310.81 billion, a PE ratio of 53.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total transaction of $614,040.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,575,904. The trade was a 8.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,741.74. This represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,183,838 shares of company stock valued at $405,595,158 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on CRM shares. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Salesforce from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $377.63.

Salesforce 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.