Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Lowers Stock Holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd has reduced its stake in Salesforce Inc. by 21.7%, selling 53,221 shares and retaining 191,507 shares worth approximately $51.7 million.
• Salesforce's stock opened at $269.11 with a market cap of $257.27 billion, and its recent quarterly earnings report showed a revenue increase of 7.6% year-over-year.
• Analysts have mixed views on Salesforce, with reports indicating a range of price targets; Needham & Company maintains a "buy" rating with a target of $400.00, while Citigroup has lowered its target to $295.00.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd cut its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 21.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 191,507 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 53,221 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Salesforce were worth $51,701,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nvwm LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 6,000 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,578,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. First Heartland Consultants Inc. boosted its position in Salesforce by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. now owns 1,246 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $334,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd. boosted its position in Salesforce by 42.6% during the 1st quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 53,012 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $14,252,000 after buying an additional 15,838 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co. boosted its position in Salesforce by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 37,157 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $9,971,000 after buying an additional 493 shares during the period. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 1st quarter worth approximately $321,467,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. DA Davidson restated an "underperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Northland Securities dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $348.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.56, for a total transaction of $599,760.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,175,148,365.76. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 33,479 shares of company stock worth $9,091,796 over the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded up $1.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $269.11. The company had a trading volume of 4,013,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,704,325. The company's 50 day moving average price is $268.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $283.98. 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 $257.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.36. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $230.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.98%.

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.