Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock Position Decreased by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 31.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,646 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 9,044 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $6,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter worth $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 85.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. TD Cowen raised Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim lowered shares of Salesforce from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $247.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $415.00 target price (up from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $377.63.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM opened at $325.49 on Tuesday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $336.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $303.42. The firm has a market cap of $311.49 billion, a PE ratio of 53.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its 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). Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,128,626.68. This represents a 11.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,111,420 shares of company stock worth $384,366,700. Company insiders own 3.20% 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.