Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Bought by YHB Investment Advisors Inc.

YHB Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,375 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,217 shares during the quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $5,736,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Athena Investment Management acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $236,000. Jag Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 2,507.9% during the 4th quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 23,706 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $7,926,000 after buying an additional 22,797 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 27,358 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $9,146,000 after buying an additional 723 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $823,000. Finally, Heartland Bank & Trust Co grew its position in Salesforce by 117.2% in the first quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,605,000 after acquiring an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CRM shares. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $404.00 target price (up previously from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $370.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut shares of Salesforce from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $420.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Northland Securities dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $349.08.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $263.14 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $268.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $296.11. Salesforce Inc. has a twelve month low of $230.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $251.56 billion, a PE ratio of 41.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,256 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $318,157.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,248,954.06. This trade represents a 8.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total value of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. This represents a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 24,992 shares of company stock worth $6,704,198. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

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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