Suncoast Equity Management Increases Holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Suncoast Equity Management boosted its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 133,889 shares of the CRM provider's stock after buying an additional 3,513 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for approximately 4.1% of Suncoast Equity Management's holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Suncoast Equity Management's holdings in Salesforce were worth $35,930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 787 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Mainstream Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Mainstream Capital Management LLC now owns 6,409 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,143,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Delap Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Delap Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its holdings in Salesforce by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 7,082 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,369,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its holdings in Salesforce by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,035 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $346,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, 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 transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. This represents a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $543,263.22. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,310 shares in the company, valued at $3,218,599.80. The trade was a 14.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 34,111 shares of company stock worth $9,299,283. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on CRM. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $349.08.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE:CRM opened at $260.79 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $249.31 billion, a PE ratio of 40.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce Inc. has a 12 month low of $230.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company's 50-day moving average price is $268.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $297.74.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 25.98%.

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.

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