Greenleaf Trust Increases Stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,696 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,327 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for about 0.2% of Greenleaf Trust's portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Greenleaf Trust's holdings in Salesforce were worth $26,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE:CRM traded down $6.97 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $263.95. The stock had a trading volume of 7,239,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,534,179. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $272.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $289.84. 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 one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The firm 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 released its quarterly 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 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 revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is 25.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.48, for a total value of $613,080.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,862,457 shares in the company, valued at $3,232,282,283.36. 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 the SEC website. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was 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 directly owned 36,090 shares in the company, valued at $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,284 shares of company stock worth $9,444,537 in the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CRM. Erste Group Bank lowered Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Stephens dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $404.00 price target (up from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.68.

Salesforce 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.