W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. Buys 1,150 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Salesforce Inc. by 81.8%, owning 2,556 shares valued at approximately $686,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares in the first quarter.
• CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares for about $598,000, reducing his ownership by 0.02%, while insiders have sold a total of 39,729 shares valued at approximately $10.76 million over the last 90 days.
• Salesforce's stock has received a variety of ratings from analysts, with a consensus average target price of $348.16 and 27 analysts recommending a buy rating.

W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 81.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,556 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the period. W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Liberty One Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 1.2% during the first quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 3,165 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $849,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. grew its position in Salesforce by 7.3% in the first quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 572 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Mendel Money Management raised its holdings in Salesforce by 3.6% during the first quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 1,112 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,760 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $472,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 5.2% in the first quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 812 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM traded down $8.84 on Thursday, reaching $240.33. The company had a trading volume of 2,950,570 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,044,412. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $264.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $280.68. The company has a market cap of $229.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.37. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $230.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its 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. 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 the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. 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 currently 25.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.42, for a total value of $567,945.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,006,718,751.82. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have sold 44,229 shares of company stock worth $11,898,691. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. Northland Securities cut their price target on Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $430.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $335.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $348.16.

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.