Baillie Gifford & Co. Acquires New Position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Baillie Gifford & Co. has acquired 1,197,896 shares of Salesforce Inc., valued at approximately $321.5 million, representing 0.12% of the company's shares.
• Salesforce reported $2.58 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $9.83 billion which indicates a year-over-year growth of 7.6%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.416 per share, producing an annualized yield of 0.62% and a dividend payout ratio of 25.98%.

Baillie Gifford & Co. purchased a new position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,197,896 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $321,467,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned about 0.12% of Salesforce at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 450.0% during the 1st quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 314.8% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $275.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Three equities 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $348.16.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.5%

Salesforce stock traded up $1.41 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $269.11. 4,013,320 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,704,325. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $268.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $284.27. The company has a market cap of $257.27 billion, a PE ratio of 42.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.36.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.44 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.56, for a total value of $599,760.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,175,148,365.76. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,479 shares of company stock valued at $9,091,796. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Company 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.