ING Groep NV Boosts Stock Position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• ING Groep NV has increased its stake in Salesforce Inc. by 41.7%, now owning 426,246 shares worth approximately $114 million.
• Salesforce recently reported an EPS of $2.58 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue rising 7.6% year-over-year.
• Insider trading activity includes CEO Marc Benioff selling 2,250 shares at an average price of $265.77, which accounts for a 0.02% decrease in his ownership.

ING Groep NV grew its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 41.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 426,246 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 125,337 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for approximately 0.8% of ING Groep NV's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. ING Groep NV's holdings in Salesforce were worth $114,387,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 926.4% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,422,979,000 after acquiring an additional 3,841,521 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 30,456.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,801,588 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,020,194,000 after buying an additional 3,789,147 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,604,770,000 after buying an additional 2,325,156 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,752,830,000 after buying an additional 1,736,667 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 1,744.0% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,820,262 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $488,486,000 after buying an additional 1,721,550 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.77, for a total transaction of $597,982.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,165,738,224.67. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 39,729 shares of company stock worth $10,763,881. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Trading Down 2.9%

NYSE:CRM opened at $250.85 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a market cap of $239.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $266.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $281.65.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 25.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CRM shares. DA Davidson reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Northland Securities lowered their price objective on Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Guggenheim upgraded Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.16.

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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