Integrated Investment Consultants LLC Buys 2,036 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 134.8%, owning 3,546 shares valued at $952,000, as reported in a recent SEC filing.
• Institutional investors now hold 80.43% of Salesforce's stock, with notable increases from firms like DZ BANK AG and GAMMA Investing LLC, which boosted their stakes significantly in recent quarters.
• Salesforce's most recent quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $2.58, surpassing estimates, while the company's average stock rating remains a "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target price of $348.16.

Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 134.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,546 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,036 shares during the quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $952,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Delaney Dennis R boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 66.1% in the first quarter. Delaney Dennis R now owns 5,694 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,528,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266 shares in the last quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 117.2% during the first quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,605,000 after buying an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Elwood Capital Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 13.5% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 23,828 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $6,394,000 after buying an additional 2,837 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 6.0% during the first quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 219,808 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $58,988,000 after acquiring an additional 12,528 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 6,697 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.00, for a total transaction of $1,975,615.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,422 shares in the company, valued at $12,219,490. This represents a 13.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.69, for a total value of $611,302.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,862,457 shares in the company, valued at $3,222,910,942.33. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,479 shares of company stock worth $9,091,796 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 15th. DA Davidson reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.16.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $1.41 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $269.11. 4,013,320 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,704,325. Salesforce Inc. has a 52 week low of $230.00 and a 52 week high of $369.00. The company's 50 day moving average price is $268.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $283.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.27 billion, a PE ratio of 42.11, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.36. 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 (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 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 firm 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 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 25.98%.

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.