Vontobel Holding Ltd. Sells 7,629 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lessened its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 237,184 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 7,629 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $63,651,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM stock traded up $2.37 on Friday, hitting $271.58. 5,031,804 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,543,873. 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 P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm's 50 day moving average is $272.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $292.32.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect 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 given a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce's payout ratio is 25.98%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,525 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.66, for a total value of $386,831.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,211 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,097,442.26. This trade represents a 11.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 1,142 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $299,603.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 136,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,895,776.40. This represents a 0.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,534 shares of company stock valued at $7,609,842 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on CRM. Citigroup cut their price objective on Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 30th. Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $347.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two investment 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $349.08.

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.