National Bank of Canada FI Raises Stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in Salesforce Inc. by 59.0% in Q1, owning approximately 2.18 million shares worth about $586 million.
• Salesforce reported quarterly earnings of $2.58 EPS, exceeding expectations, with revenues of $9.83 billion for the quarter.
• Analysts have set new price targets for Salesforce, with UBS Group reaching as high as $404.00 and a consensus average target price of $348.16.

National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 59.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,184,827 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 810,588 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up approximately 0.6% of National Bank of Canada FI's portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. National Bank of Canada FI owned 0.23% of Salesforce worth $586,324,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce by 1.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 87,913,628 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $23,592,501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383,942 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Salesforce by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce by 5.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,014,148 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,419,037,000 after acquiring an additional 437,435 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Salesforce by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,988,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,683,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,658,132 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,894,673,000 after acquiring an additional 602,445 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of CRM stock traded down $0.79 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $240.09. 8,807,591 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,971,969. Salesforce Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The firm has a market cap of $229.53 billion, a PE ratio of 37.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.37. The company's 50 day moving average is $263.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $279.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The business's revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Guggenheim raised shares of Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $275.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $348.16.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.40, for a total value of $558,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,958,834,236.40. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,479 shares of company stock worth $12,457,591. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

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.