Investment Management Corp of Ontario Acquires 2,890 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Investment Management Corp of Ontario lifted its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,238 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,890 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for approximately 0.5% of Investment Management Corp of Ontario's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Investment Management Corp of Ontario's holdings in Salesforce were worth $16,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,599,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its stake in Salesforce by 926.4% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,256,211 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,422,979,000 after buying an additional 3,841,521 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $1,173,564,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,604,770,000 after acquiring an additional 2,325,156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 11,224,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $3,752,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,667 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on CRM. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Stephens began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $311.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $350.56.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded up $2.59 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $291.41. 1,647,990 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,824,350. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business's fifty day moving average is $267.27 and its 200-day moving average is $307.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $280.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.93, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.42. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. This is a positive change from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,141,957.90. This represents a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $137,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,711 shares in the company, valued at $3,220,525. The trade was a 4.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,830 shares of company stock worth $12,907,361 in the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.