Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Purchased by FORA Capital LLC

FORA Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 4,989.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,206 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,357 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up about 1.4% of FORA Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. FORA Capital LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $11,826,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Piscataqua Savings Bank lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its stake in Salesforce by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total value of $608,108.04. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $202,702.68. This represents a 75.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 144,510 shares of company stock worth $42,475,538. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE:CRM traded down $9.46 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $333.72. The stock had a trading volume of 1,565,269 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,273,870. The firm has a market capitalization of $319.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $348.86. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $298.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $269.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 27.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $270.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $339.66.

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.