Salesforce Inc. $CRM Shares Acquired by PNC Financial Services Group Inc.

Key Points

• PNC Financial Services increased its Salesforce stake by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 258,121 shares valued at about $68.4 million. Institutional investors still own a large majority of the company at 80.43%.
• Several Salesforce insiders bought shares recently, including directors Laura Alber and David Blair Kirk, both making purchases around $500,000 each. Insider ownership stands at 3.5%.
• Salesforce reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.81 beating estimates and revenue rising 12.1% year over year, while also authorizing a $25 billion share buyback and raising its quarterly dividend to $0.44 per share.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 258,121 shares of the CRM provider's stock after buying an additional 12,046 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $68,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Key Capital Management INC bought a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Legacy Bridge LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Texas Capital Bancshares Inc TX bought a new position in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 285.7% during the 4th quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, Director Laura Alber purchased 2,571 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $194.58 per share, for a total transaction of $500,265.18. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 9,530 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,854,347.40. This represents a 36.94% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Blair Kirk bought 2,570 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $194.62 per share, for a total transaction of $500,173.40. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 13,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,664,153.18. This represents a 23.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 3.50% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $176.35 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $182.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $213.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $144.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.58, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.14. Salesforce Inc. has a 1-year low of $163.52 and a 1-year high of $286.35.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The CRM provider reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.76. The company had revenue of $11.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.18 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 15.38% and a net margin of 17.96%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.78 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 13.110-13.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.110-3.130 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 9.71 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, March 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $25.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the CRM provider to buy up to 14.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This is a positive change from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on CRM shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on Salesforce from $223.00 to $194.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Barclays reduced their target price on Salesforce from $265.00 to $252.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Salesforce from $375.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Salesforce from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Salesforce from $290.00 to $210.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $274.12.

Salesforce News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank reiterated its Buy rating on Salesforce and kept a $255 price target, saying it expects a “seasonally slow but steady” start ahead of earnings. Deutsche Bank Stays Positive on Salesforce (CRM), Citi Lowers PT
• Positive Sentiment: Cint expanded its relationship with Salesforce to deliver next-generation AI-powered support, reinforcing demand for Salesforce’s Agentforce and Slack-based enterprise AI tools. Cint and Salesforce to Deliver the Next Generation of AI-Powered Support
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlighted Salesforce as a beneficiary of ongoing investor interest in AI and big data, and noted that the company’s upcoming earnings report is expected to show growth and could support another beat. Wall Street's Insights Into Key Metrics Ahead of Salesforce (CRM) Q1 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary around CRM remains mixed overall, with some broker notes still constructive while valuation-focused pieces question how much growth and AI moat are already priced in.
• Negative Sentiment: Citi reportedly lowered its price target on Salesforce due to slower deal activity and rising competitive pressure, adding to investor caution. Citi Lowers Target on Salesforce (CRM) Over Slower Deal Activity
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America reinstated an Underperform rating and a $160 price target, arguing Salesforce faces an “AI-driven structural reset,” which weighed on sentiment. Salesforce rated ‘Underperform’ by Bank of America on AI growth concerns

Salesforce Company Profile

Salesforce, founded in 1999 and headquartered in San Francisco, is a global provider of cloud-based software focused on customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise applications. The company popularized the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model for CRM and has built a broad portfolio of products designed to help organizations manage sales, service, marketing, commerce and analytics through a unified, cloud-first platform.

Core offerings include Sales Cloud for sales automation, Service Cloud for customer support, Marketing Cloud for digital marketing and engagement, and Commerce Cloud for e-commerce.

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