Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Increases Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 166.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,667,337 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,042,132 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises approximately 1.8% of Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC owned about 0.17% of Salesforce worth $557,441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,955,353 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $6,656,078,000 after purchasing an additional 175,035 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $4,163,703,000 after acquiring an additional 177,321 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $3,599,867,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Salesforce by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,938,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,988,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,683,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after acquiring an additional 2,325,156 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Guggenheim upgraded Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday. 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 issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $351.37.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM traded up $0.55 on Tuesday, reaching $266.19. 1,448,523 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,966,072. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $272.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $308.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The stock has a market cap of $255.92 billion, a PE ratio of 43.78, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This is an increase from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce's payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Brian Millham sold 979 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.66, for a total value of $248,333.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,645,492.42. This trade represents a 13.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 52,051 shares of company stock worth $15,027,714. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce 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.