Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 277.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,316 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,174 shares during the period. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,158,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Athena Investment Management purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $236,000. Jag Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in 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 holdings in 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. Dash Acquisitions Inc. raised its holdings in Salesforce by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Dash Acquisitions Inc. now owns 60,521 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $21,785,000 after buying an additional 1,525 shares during the period. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $823,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, CEO Brian Millham sold 3,937 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total value of $1,120,391.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,570,312.44. This trade represents a 41.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total value of $543,263.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,310 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,218,599.80. This represents a 14.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,111 shares of company stock valued at $9,299,283. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Northland Securities decreased their price target on Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Stephens cut their price objective on Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Salesforce from $367.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $349.08.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $258.98 on Thursday. Salesforce Inc. has a 1-year low of $230.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00. The stock's 50-day moving average is $268.31 and its 200 day moving average is $298.72. The company has a market cap of $247.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.53, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.38. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict 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 will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.

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