Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt Grows Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 71.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,021 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,800 shares during the quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt's holdings in Salesforce were worth $6,980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 85.1% in the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total value of $543,263.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,310 shares in the company, valued at $3,218,599.80. This trade represents a 14.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total transaction of $1,725,518.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,967,047.50. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,332 shares of company stock valued at $11,024,802. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on CRM. Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Salesforce from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $346.34.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of CRM stock traded down $2.29 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $265.93. The company had a trading volume of 6,556,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,578,379. The company's fifty day moving average is $266.84 and its 200 day moving average is $301.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.77 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $254.23 billion, a PE ratio of 43.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.44 EPS. Research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

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.