Hamilton Capital Partners LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Hamilton Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 29.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,181 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 6,664 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises about 5.0% of Hamilton Capital Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Hamilton Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $7,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Athena Investment Management purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $236,000. Jag Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 2,507.9% in the fourth quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 23,706 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $7,926,000 after acquiring an additional 22,797 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 27,358 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $9,146,000 after buying an additional 723 shares during the last quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 60,521 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $21,785,000 after buying an additional 1,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $823,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Brian Millham sold 3,937 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total value of $1,120,391.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 5,518 shares in the company, valued at $1,570,312.44. This trade represents a 41.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $137,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,711 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,220,525. The trade was a 4.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,111 shares of company stock valued at $9,299,283 over the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.4%

NYSE CRM opened at $258.98 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $268.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $298.72. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. 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 company has a market capitalization of $247.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Guggenheim upgraded Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group set a $404.00 price objective on Salesforce and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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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