China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 3,214 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 13.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 20,269 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 3,214 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $5,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $823,000. Heartland Bank & Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 117.2% in the first quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,605,000 after acquiring an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,249,000. Elwood Capital Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. Finally, Bestgate Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $441,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, insider Miguel Milano sold 405 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $106,251.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,605,922.55. The trade was a 3.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 1,142 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total transaction of $299,603.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 136,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,895,776.40. This trade represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,034 shares of company stock valued at $8,833,235. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM stock traded down $6.97 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $263.95. The company had a trading volume of 7,239,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,543,767. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $272.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $290.38. Salesforce Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $252.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.36.

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. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.44 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 25.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Three 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $348.68.

About Salesforce

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.