Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Bank of Nova Scotia

Key Points

• The Bank of Nova Scotia reduced its holdings in Salesforce Inc. by 37.8%, now owning approximately 0.06% of the company, valued at $149.3 million.
• Salesforce reported a 7.6% year-over-year revenue increase of $9.83 billion in its latest quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $2.58, surpassing estimates.
• Insider selling activity included CEO Marc Benioff's sale of 2,250 shares valued at approximately $584,258, indicating a slight decrease in his ownership.

Bank of Nova Scotia trimmed its holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 37.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 556,523 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 338,605 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.06% of Salesforce worth $149,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 450.0% during the 1st quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 314.8% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $250.85 on Friday. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a market cap of $239.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $282.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (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 analysts' expectations of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a $0.416 dividend. 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 currently 25.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $275.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $348.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 6,697 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the insider owned 41,422 shares in the company, valued at $12,219,490. The trade was a 13.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.67, for a total value of $584,257.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,955,566 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,104,501,823.22. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 39,729 shares of company stock worth $10,763,881. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

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.

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