KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Acquires 4,700 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 1.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 368,843 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,700 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for about 0.5% of KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings in Salesforce were worth $98,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CRM. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its stake in Salesforce by 926.4% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,422,979,000 after acquiring an additional 3,841,521 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 30,456.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,801,588 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,020,194,000 after buying an additional 3,789,147 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after buying an additional 2,325,156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 18.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,736,667 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Salesforce from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $404.00 price target (up from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Stephens lowered their target price on Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Three equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.16.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of CRM stock traded up $1.78 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $269.48. The company had a trading volume of 2,281,696 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,139,162. The company has a 50 day moving average of $268.50 and a 200 day moving average of $284.66. 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 market cap of $257.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.36. Salesforce Inc. has a 1-year low of $230.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The firm's revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.44 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.56, for a total value of $599,760.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,175,148,365.76. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 33,479 shares of company stock valued at $9,091,796 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.