Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Independence Bank of Kentucky

Independence Bank of Kentucky trimmed its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,646 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 418 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for 1.1% of Independence Bank of Kentucky’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $3,809,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 333.3% during the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.66, for a total transaction of $3,249,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,407,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,688,171,467.82. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 24,453 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.08, for a total transaction of $7,386,762.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.66, for a total value of $3,249,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,407,327 shares in the company, valued at $2,688,171,467.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 547,387 shares of company stock worth $151,174,635 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on CRM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $342.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Argus boosted their price target on Salesforce from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target (down from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $292.79.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.7 %

NYSE CRM traded up $4.25 during trading on Friday, reaching $257.10. 12,619,303 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,223,949. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.68 and a fifty-two week high of $318.71. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $259.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $276.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $249.13 billion, a PE ratio of 46.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.25.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.15 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 11.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.15 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 7.19%.

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.