Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Acquired by Elefante Mark B

Elefante Mark B boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 99.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,417 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,703 shares during the period. Elefante Mark B's holdings in Salesforce were worth $917,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Seven Mile Advisory increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 1,762 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $589,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 1.2% in the first quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 3,165 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $849,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 7.3% in the first quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 572 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Mendel Money Management grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 1,112 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $298,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,760 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 6,697 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.00, for a total value of $1,975,615.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 41,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,219,490. This trade represents a 13.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.69, for a total transaction of $611,302.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,862,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,222,910,942.33. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,479 shares of company stock valued at $9,091,796. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.5%

CRM traded up $1.41 during trading hours 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 current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The firm has a market cap of $257.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $268.07 and a 200 day moving average of $284.27.

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. 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%. The company's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Erste Group Bank lowered Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. DA Davidson reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Stephens lowered 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. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $348.16.

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.