Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Purchases 3,735 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 5.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 72,249 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,735 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $19,389,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $6,656,078,000 after acquiring an additional 175,035 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,752,830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,667 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth about $3,599,867,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Salesforce by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,988,422,000 after buying an additional 1,683,233 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,658,132 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,894,673,000 after purchasing an additional 602,445 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, insider Miguel Milano sold 405 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $106,251.75. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,605,922.55. The trade was a 3.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 261 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total transaction of $68,473.35. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,154,496.40. The trade was a 2.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 33,819 shares of company stock worth $9,111,823. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Salesforce Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of CRM stock traded up $2.52 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $262.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,376,432 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,563,887. 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 one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $250.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.36. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $270.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $286.17.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.44 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the topic of several research reports. Erste Group Bank lowered Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Salesforce from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $348.16.

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.