Point72 Europe London LLP Decreases Stock Holdings in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Key Points

• Point72 Europe London LLP has reduced its stake in Salesforce Inc. by 57.3%, now holding 41,528 shares valued at approximately $11.14 million.
• In the first quarter, various institutional investors adjusted their positions in Salesforce, with Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt notably increasing its stake by 121.9% to own 355,000 shares worth $95.22 million.
• Salesforce's latest earnings report indicated a beat on expectations with $2.58 EPS and revenue of $9.83 billion, signaling a 7.6% revenue increase compared to the previous year.

Point72 Europe London LLP reduced its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 57.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,528 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 55,672 shares during the period. Point72 Europe London LLP's holdings in Salesforce were worth $11,144,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of CRM. AIA Group Ltd raised its position in Salesforce by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 32,885 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $8,825,000 after purchasing an additional 2,436 shares during the last quarter. Notis McConarty Edward raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 71.6% during the first quarter. Notis McConarty Edward now owns 3,844 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,032,000 after acquiring an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its stake in Salesforce by 1.5% in the first quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,036,482 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $274,802,000 after acquiring an additional 15,782 shares during the period. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. lifted its stake in Salesforce by 43.0% in the first quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 104,834 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $28,133,000 after acquiring an additional 31,537 shares during the period. Finally, Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 121.9% in the first quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 355,000 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $95,222,000 after acquiring an additional 195,000 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total value of $578,295.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $3,061,511,978.42. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold 61,577 shares of company stock valued at $15,776,163 in the last quarter. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on CRM. Erste Group Bank cut Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Tuesday. Westpark Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $341.50.

Salesforce Stock Performance

CRM traded down $3.31 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $252.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,290,237 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,008,836. 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 business's 50 day simple moving average is $257.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $268.36. The firm has a market cap of $241.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.22. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $226.48 and a one year high of $369.00.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.