26,739 Shares in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Purchased by Zions Bancorporation National Association UT

Key Points

• Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased 26,739 shares of Salesforce Inc., valued at approximately $7.18 million, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• Salesforce's stock has seen analysts set varying price targets, with a consensus average target of $348.16, while the company also recorded a 3.4% drop in its stock price recently.
• In recent insider activity, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares for around $558,900, reducing his overall ownership slightly, as insiders sold $12.46 million in shares last quarter.

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 26,739 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $7,176,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Notis McConarty Edward grew its stake in Salesforce by 71.6% in the first quarter. Notis McConarty Edward now owns 3,844 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt grew its position in Salesforce by 121.9% in the first quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 355,000 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $95,222,000 after acquiring an additional 195,000 shares in the last quarter. Delaney Dennis R raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 66.1% during the 1st quarter. Delaney Dennis R now owns 5,694 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,528,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266 shares in the last quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 34.5% during the first quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 4,948 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,328,000 after buying an additional 1,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mathes Company Inc. raised its holdings in Salesforce by 396.9% during the first quarter. Mathes Company Inc. now owns 12,298 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,300,000 after buying an additional 9,823 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 30th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $275.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, July 14th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $335.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Westpark Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.16.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.40, for a total transaction of $558,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,958,834,236.40. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold 46,479 shares of company stock valued at $12,457,591 over the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of CRM opened at $240.63 on Friday. Salesforce Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $263.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $280.10. The firm has a market cap of $230.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.37.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.44 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

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.

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