Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Acquired by Cumberland Partners Ltd

Key Points

• Cumberland Partners Ltd increased its holdings in Salesforce by 13.5%, acquiring an additional 1,500 shares valued at approximately $3.38 million.
• Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares worth $597,982.50, reducing his ownership by 0.02% but still retaining over $3.16 billion in shares.
• Wall Street analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Salesforce with an average price target of $348.16.

Cumberland Partners Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 13.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,600 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Cumberland Partners Ltd's holdings in Salesforce were worth $3,381,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 263,501 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $70,713,000 after acquiring an additional 11,075 shares during the period. Generali Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 198.8% during the first quarter. Generali Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne now owns 60,118 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $16,133,000 after purchasing an additional 40,000 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 5.9% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 570,125 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $152,999,000 after purchasing an additional 31,933 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 21.4% in the first quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 107,299 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $28,795,000 after purchasing an additional 18,891 shares during the period. Finally, Helium Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 4.2% during the first quarter. Helium Advisors LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.77, for a total value of $597,982.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,165,738,224.67. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,729 shares of company stock worth $10,763,881. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $250.85 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $266.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $282.19. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $239.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.26, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. Salesforce's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 0.7%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group set a $404.00 price objective on Salesforce and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Salesforce from $350.00 to $335.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Guggenheim upgraded Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $348.16.

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.

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