Empowered Funds LLC Has $9.01 Million Stake in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Salesforce Inc. by 22.6% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to $9.01 million worth of shares.
• Salesforce's CEO, Marc Benioff, sold 2,250 shares of the firm for approximately $565,000, slightly decreasing his ownership percentage.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.416 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.7%, scheduled to be paid on October 9th.

Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 22.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,558 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,184 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $9,006,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Coign Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Coign Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,183 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $586,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Staley Capital Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.1% during the first quarter. Staley Capital Advisers Inc. now owns 3,343 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $897,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. KDT Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 4.1% during the first quarter. KDT Advisors LLC now owns 967 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 3,165 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $849,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Salesforce by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 572 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.12, for a total value of $565,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,991,233,709.52. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 68,327 shares of company stock worth $17,450,793. Insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho cut their target price on Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $325.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Salesforce from $404.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $221.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $332.58.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $252.12 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $240.02 billion, a PE ratio of 36.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $254.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $265.82. Salesforce Inc. has a twelve month low of $226.48 and a twelve month high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The company had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.56 EPS. Salesforce's revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th will be given a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 17th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 24.13%.

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.

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