Teacher Retirement System of Texas Cuts Stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas trimmed its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 349,890 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 8,356 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Salesforce were worth $93,896,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. 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. Seven Mile Advisory raised its holdings in Salesforce by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 1,762 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $589,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Kozak & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in Salesforce by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 2,571 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $654,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Partners LLC now owns 834 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Naviter Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC now owns 9,231 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,492,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 261 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $68,473.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,024 shares in the company, valued at $3,154,496.40. This trade represents a 2.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.48, for a total transaction of $613,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,862,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,232,282,283.36. This represents a 0.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 28,534 shares of company stock worth $7,609,842 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

NYSE:CRM traded up $2.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $271.58. 5,031,804 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,543,799. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $259.63 billion, a PE ratio of 42.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.36. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $272.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $291.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The business 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%. Salesforce's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.44 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. Salesforce's payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Westpark Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. 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. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $404.00 target price (up previously from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Two equities 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 given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $349.08.

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.