Salesforce Inc. $CRM Shares Sold by Okabena Investment Services Inc.

Key Points

• Okabena Investment Services Inc. reduced its stake in Salesforce Inc. by 23.8%, now holding 6,105 shares valued at approximately $1.64 million.
• Several institutional investors have recently increased their positions in Salesforce, with Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt boosting its stake by 121.9%.
• Salesforce's most recent quarterly earnings indicated revenue growth of 7.6% year-over-year, surpassing analyst expectations, and it reported earnings per share of $2.58.

Okabena Investment Services Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 23.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,105 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 1,908 shares during the period. Okabena Investment Services Inc.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 450.0% in the first quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 314.8% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $375.00 to $325.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Northland Securities lowered their price objective on Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Mizuho reduced 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. Erste Group Bank downgraded Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.43.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock traded up $1.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $256.37. 7,354,032 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,243,193. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $226.48 and a one year high of $369.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $257.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $269.67. The company has a market cap of $245.09 billion, a PE ratio of 40.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.37.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.44 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.98%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.56, for a total value of $559,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $2,960,740,087.76. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 59,327 shares of company stock worth $15,201,738. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.