Phoenix Financial Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Key Points

• Phoenix Financial Ltd. increased its holdings in Salesforce Inc. by 42.6% during the first quarter, owning 53,012 shares valued at approximately $14.25 million.
• Salesforce recently reported earnings of $2.58 EPS, surpassing analyst expectations, with a quarterly revenue of $9.83 billion and a year-over-year revenue increase of 7.6%.
• Multiple hedge funds adjusted their positions in Salesforce, with institutional investors now holding 80.43% of the company's stock as of the latest reports.

Phoenix Financial Ltd. increased its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 42.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 53,012 shares of the CRM provider's stock after buying an additional 15,838 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $14,252,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Equitable Trust Co. grew its position in Salesforce by 1.3% during the first quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 37,157 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $9,971,000 after buying an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the first quarter worth $321,467,000. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 111.3% in the 1st quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,360 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,439,000 after purchasing an additional 2,823 shares during the last quarter. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,882,000. Finally, Freemont Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at $2,952,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Westpark Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Salesforce from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $348.16.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

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

Salesforce Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $1.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $269.11. The stock had a trading volume of 4,013,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,704,325. The company has a market capitalization of $257.27 billion, a PE ratio of 42.11, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $268.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $284.27. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The company's revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Salesforce 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.