2,788 Salesforce Inc. $CRM Shares Sold by Arta Finance Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Arta Finance Wealth Management cut its Salesforce stake by 27.2% in the third quarter, selling 2,788 shares and retaining 7,466 shares valued at approximately $1.714 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.43% of Salesforce.
• Salesforce’s stock opened at $228.56, down 1%, while analysts maintained a generally positive outlook with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $278.98.
• The company reported quarterly revenue of $11.35 billion and EPS of $5.90, beating expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, equivalent to a 0.8% annualized yield.

Arta Finance Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 27.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,466 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 2,788 shares during the period. Arta Finance Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,714,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Latitude Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 410.3% in the first quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 148 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. ABS Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $610,974,000. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE:CRM opened at $228.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $188.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $238.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $198.88. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.32 and a 52-week high of $269.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The CRM provider reported $5.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $2.63. Salesforce had a return on equity of 24.90% and a net margin of 21.99%. The company had revenue of $11.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.91 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 16.670-16.710 EPS and its Q3 2027 guidance at 3.420-3.440 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 12.82 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 17th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 17th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on Salesforce from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Monday, October 12th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $278.98.

Key Stories Impacting Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rune Technologies, a defense-technology company. The deal supports Salesforce’s push into military and government applications, potentially expanding its addressable market and adding a specialized technology platform. Financial terms were not disclosed. Salesforce Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Rune Technologies
• Positive Sentiment: TPM Holdings completed an 18-month realignment centered on Salesforce CRM and artificial intelligence for the architecture, engineering and construction industries. Its combination of TrebleHook and The Hunley Group could expand Salesforce-based implementations and demonstrate growing demand for industry-specific AI tools. TPM Holdings Accelerates Investment in AI and Salesforce CRM
• Positive Sentiment: Several analyst and investment articles describe Salesforce as a potential AI rebound candidate, citing autonomous AI agents, improving monetization, strong free cash flow and its leadership in customer relationship management. These views may support longer-term sentiment, although they are not new company guidance. AI Comeback Story Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Salesforce’s earnings report is approaching, making upcoming revenue growth, AI adoption, margins and forward guidance the main near-term catalysts. The company’s latest reported quarter included revenue of $11.35 billion and adjusted earnings that exceeded consensus estimates. Salesforce Earnings Preview
• Negative Sentiment: Salesforce declined in sympathy with ServiceNow, Fortinet and other software stocks after investors focused on slower contracted-revenue growth despite earnings beats and higher AI targets. The reaction has renewed concerns about enterprise-software demand, AI monetization timelines and elevated sector valuations. ServiceNow Results Dent Software Stocks

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, Director Craig Conway sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.61, for a total value of $1,172,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,416,936.57. This represents a 45.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Blair Kirk bought 4,176 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $239.33 per share, for a total transaction of $999,442.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 18,748 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,486,958.84. This trade represents a 28.66% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Company Profile

Salesforce, Inc NYSE: CRM is a global enterprise software company that provides cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) technology. Its platform helps organizations manage sales, customer service, marketing, commerce, data, analytics and interactions with customers across digital and traditional channels.

The company's products include Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud and Data Cloud. Salesforce also offers Tableau for data visualization and analytics, MuleSoft for application integration, and Slack for workplace collaboration.

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