Flossbach Von Storch SE Increases Stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Flossbach Von Storch SE boosted its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 711,099 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 18,656 shares during the period. Salesforce comprises 0.8% of Flossbach Von Storch SE's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Flossbach Von Storch SE owned 0.07% of Salesforce worth $190,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $823,000. Heartland Bank & Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 117.2% during the first quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,249,000. Elwood Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. Finally, Bestgate Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $441,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.48, for a total transaction of $613,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,862,457 shares in the company, valued at $3,232,282,283.36. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total value of $1,762,784.29. Following the transaction, the insider owned 36,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. The trade was a 16.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,034 shares of company stock worth $8,833,235 over the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

NYSE:CRM opened at $273.77 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Salesforce Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $272.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $290.51. The company has a market cap of $261.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.84, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.36.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on CRM. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $370.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Stephens dropped their price target on Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Erste Group Bank lowered Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $404.00 target price (up from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $349.08.

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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