Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC Increases Stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 28.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 385,452 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 85,204 shares during the period. Salesforce makes up approximately 3.3% of Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $103,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 450.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 314.8% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

NYSE:CRM opened at $240.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $263.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $280.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.04 billion, a PE ratio of 37.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.37. Salesforce Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. Salesforce's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. UBS Group set a $404.00 price target on Salesforce and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $404.00 price objective (up previously from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $348.16.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.40, for a total transaction of $558,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,958,834,236.40. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 46,479 shares of company stock worth $12,457,591 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

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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