4,223 Shares in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Purchased by Bridgewater Advisors Inc.

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,223 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,131,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at $823,000. Heartland Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in Salesforce by 117.2% during the first quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares during the last quarter. Elwood Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $1,337,000. Strategic Blueprint LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 13.5% during the first quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 23,828 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $6,394,000 after purchasing an additional 2,837 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bestgate Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $441,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Macquarie reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Stephens decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on 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 issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.16.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,525 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.66, for a total transaction of $386,831.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,211 shares in the company, valued at $3,097,442.26. This trade represents a 11.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.48, for a total value of $613,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,862,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,232,282,283.36. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 31,569 shares of company stock worth $8,533,528. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM traded down $1.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $256.57. 3,363,535 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,538,831. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $271.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $287.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $245.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.16, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.36. 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 (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. Salesforce's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 25.98%.

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.