Maxi Investments CY Ltd Boosts Holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Maxi Investments CY Ltd increased its stock holdings in Salesforce Inc. by 483.5% during the first quarter, now owning 34,172 shares valued at approximately $9.17 million.
• Salesforce reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.58, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue increasing by 7.6% year-over-year to $9.83 billion.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.416, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.7%, while its payout ratio stands at 25.98%.

Maxi Investments CY Ltd raised its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 483.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,172 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 28,316 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up approximately 1.8% of Maxi Investments CY Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Maxi Investments CY Ltd's holdings in Salesforce were worth $9,170,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Salesforce by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Salesforce by 23.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,683,233 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 7.5% during the fourth 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 valued at $2,894,673,000 after acquiring an additional 602,445 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 8,598,989 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,874,900,000 after purchasing an additional 114,278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Salesforce by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after purchasing an additional 2,325,156 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $1.38 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $248.87. 5,827,156 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,861,031. Salesforce Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $237.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.95, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.37. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $265.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $280.90.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CRM shares. Mizuho dropped their target price on Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. DA Davidson restated an "underperform" rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. 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. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $348.16.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.42, for a total transaction of $567,945.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $3,006,718,751.82. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 44,229 shares of company stock worth $11,898,691 over the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.