Chesley Taft & Associates LLC Has $13.13 Million Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,917 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,284 shares during the period. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $13,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CRM. OMC Financial Services LTD increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD now owns 11,390 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 787 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 3,366 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,125,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Mainstream Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Mainstream Capital Management LLC now owns 6,409 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,143,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 896 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Salesforce from $367.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $346.34.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 705 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.44, for a total transaction of $197,005.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,605,219.12. The trade was a 7.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total transaction of $1,725,518.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,967,047.50. The trade was a 11.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 40,332 shares of company stock valued at $11,024,802. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 2.7%

NYSE:CRM traded up $7.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $274.48. The stock had a trading volume of 7,500,949 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,611,496. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.77 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $262.40 billion, a PE ratio of 45.14, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $302.92.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.61%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 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.