Quantbot Technologies LP Purchases New Stake in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP acquired 25,765 shares of Salesforce Inc. valued at approximately $6,914,000 in the first quarter, indicating growing institutional interest in the stock.
• Analysts have lowered their price targets for Salesforce shares, with BMO Capital Markets reducing their target from $350 to $335, while maintaining an "outperform" rating.
• Recently, Salesforce declared a quarterly dividend of $0.416 per share, equating to an annualized dividend of $1.66 and a yield of 0.7%.

Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 25,765 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,914,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AIA Group Ltd grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 8.0% in 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 period. Notis McConarty Edward grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 71.6% in the 1st quarter. Notis McConarty Edward now owns 3,844 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,036,482 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $274,802,000 after purchasing an additional 15,782 shares during the period. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 43.0% in the 1st quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 104,834 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $28,133,000 after purchasing an additional 31,537 shares during the period. Finally, Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 121.9% in the 1st quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 355,000 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $95,222,000 after purchasing an additional 195,000 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.07, for a total value of $553,657.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,931,080,275.97. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,577 shares of company stock valued at $13,528,188. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $1.8650 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $247.6950. The company had a trading volume of 4,629,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,225,452. The stock has a market capitalization of $236.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.37. 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 1-year low of $226.48 and a 1-year high of $369.00. The firm's 50 day moving average is $258.58 and its 200-day moving average is $273.10.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.270-11.330 EPS. Q2 2026 guidance at 2.760-2.780 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CRM shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $404.00 price objective (up from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped 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. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $342.89.

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.