3,731 Shares in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Bought by Argus Investors Counsel Inc.
Argus Investors Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,731 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $982,000.
A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $1,420,381,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 125,717.4% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,260,412 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,360,428,000 after purchasing an additional 10,252,257 shares during the last quarter. Starboard Value LP acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $401,215,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 99.7% in the second quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 3,196,861 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $675,370,000 after purchasing an additional 1,595,733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 11.5% in the second quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 9,925,118 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,096,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,026,380 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. JMP Securities boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $293.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Mizuho reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 target price (up previously from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $304.97.
Salesforce Stock Up 0.2 %
CRM stock opened at $302.37 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $297.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $257.79. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.31 and a 12 month high of $318.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $293.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.28.
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. The company had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Salesforce Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 13th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.52%.
Insider Activity
In other Salesforce news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.28, for a total transaction of $2,702,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,179,231.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Salesforce news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.28, for a total transaction of $2,702,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,179,231.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 7,074 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.00, for a total transaction of $2,009,016.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 38,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,074,012. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 903,175 shares of company stock valued at $260,851,046 over the last quarter. 3.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
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.
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