Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc Cuts Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc lowered its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 22.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 20,619 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 5,973 shares during the period. Salesforce makes up approximately 3.5% of Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $6,894,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. EWA LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.7% in the third quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $548,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Umpqua Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nvwm LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% during the third quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total transaction of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,128,626.68. This trade represents a 11.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.82, for a total transaction of $1,213,044.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at $34,229,213.48. The trade was a 3.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,183,838 shares of company stock worth $405,595,158 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on CRM. DA Davidson upped their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $405.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $415.00 price target (up previously from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.63.

Salesforce Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of CRM stock opened at $324.77 on Monday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The firm has a market capitalization 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. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $337.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $291.80. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

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

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.