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

Flossbach Von Storch SE lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor 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 biggest position. Flossbach Von Storch SE owned about 0.07% of Salesforce worth $190,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Silphium Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in Salesforce by 75.9% during the first quarter. Silphium Asset Management Ltd now owns 13,195 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,541,000 after acquiring an additional 5,695 shares during the last quarter. New Insight Wealth Advisors boosted its position in Salesforce by 5.1% during the first quarter. New Insight Wealth Advisors now owns 3,729 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,001,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 776.9% during the first quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 7,226 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,939,000 after acquiring an additional 6,402 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 80,903 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $21,711,000 after purchasing an additional 903 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BXM Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 102.1% in the 1st quarter. BXM Wealth LLC now owns 2,262 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $606,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the company'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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 36,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. This represents a 16.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,232,282,283.36. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,284 shares of company stock worth $9,444,537. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded down $6.97 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $263.95. The stock had a trading volume of 7,239,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,534,179. Salesforce Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The firm's 50 day moving average is $272.43 and its 200-day moving average is $289.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $252.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.36.

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

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on CRM shares. UBS Group set a $404.00 target price on shares of Salesforce and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Westpark Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, 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 report on Thursday, May 15th. Three equities research 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.