Advisor Resource Council Invests $3.85 Million in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Advisor Resource Council purchased a new stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 14,343 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,849,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $6,656,078,000 after acquiring an additional 175,035 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after purchasing an additional 177,321 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,667 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $3,599,867,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Salesforce by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,988,422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,683,233 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE CRM opened at $258.98 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $268.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $298.23. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a market capitalization of $247.59 billion, a PE ratio of 40.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. Salesforce's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $325.00 price target for the company. UBS Group set a $404.00 price objective on Salesforce and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup cut their target price on Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $349.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $543,263.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,310 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,218,599.80. This trade represents a 14.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now owns 36,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,111 shares of company stock worth $9,299,283 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

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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