Tran Capital Management L.P. Buys 5,239 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Tran Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 92,950 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,239 shares during the period. Salesforce makes up approximately 3.4% of Tran Capital Management L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Tran Capital Management L.P.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $24,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $6,656,078,000 after purchasing an additional 175,035 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $4,163,703,000 after buying an additional 177,321 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,736,667 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,599,867,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Salesforce by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,988,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,683,233 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM stock traded down $8.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $258.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,566,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,563,200. The firm's 50-day moving average is $267.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $300.72. The company has a market cap of $246.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.47, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $227.77 and a 1-year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released 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 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The company had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.44 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued 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 presently 25.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $325.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $346.34.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total value of $1,725,518.77. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,967,047.50. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 3,273 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $931,430.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 125,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,614,048.68. This trade represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 40,332 shares of company stock worth $11,024,802. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

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.