Financial Council LLC Makes New Investment in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Financial Council LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 616 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Veritas Asset Management LLP acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the third quarter worth about $733,805,000. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 52.7% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,433,785 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,482,347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530,572 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Salesforce by 46.7% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 3,829,773 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,280,408,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219,254 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its position in Salesforce by 171.2% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,634,834 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $447,470,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032,068 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 56,872.2% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 933,204 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $311,998,000 after purchasing an additional 931,566 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 942 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $339.78, for a total transaction of $320,072.76. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 120,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,886,746.74. The trade was a 0.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,805,936.08. The trade was a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock worth $381,283,706. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CRM shares. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $365.32.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE:CRM opened at $297.63 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $329.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $307.95. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The firm has a market cap of $284.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued 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 firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.16%.

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.