Vest Financial LLC Acquires 103,654 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Vest Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 1,703.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 109,738 shares of the CRM provider's stock after buying an additional 103,654 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $29,449,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CRM. West Coast Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,145,000. Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 42.6% in the 1st quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 120,356 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $32,299,000 after purchasing an additional 35,949 shares during the last quarter. Breakwater Capital Group boosted its stake in Salesforce by 126.1% during the 1st quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 1,926 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074 shares during the period. Retirement Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 44.7% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 871 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. Finally, Chesley Taft & Associates LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 2.7% during the first quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 48,917 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $13,127,000 after purchasing an additional 1,284 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded up $7.34 during trading on Friday, hitting $274.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,500,949 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,591,171. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.77 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $266.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $302.92. The company has a market capitalization of $262.40 billion, a PE ratio of 45.14, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $543,263.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,218,599.80. This trade represents a 14.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 6,697 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.00, for a total value of $1,975,615.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 41,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,219,490. This represents a 13.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 40,332 shares of company stock worth $11,024,802 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Salesforce from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $420.00 to $275.00 in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Tuesday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $325.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $346.34.

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.