FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH Cuts Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH reduced its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 8.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,846 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 449 shares during the quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,620,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce by 300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Annapolis Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 135.6% during the third quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at about $53,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 6,161 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.75, for a total value of $1,785,149.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $280,767.75. This trade represents a 86.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,183,838 shares of company stock valued at $405,595,158 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $324.77 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $337.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $291.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.81 billion, a PE ratio of 53.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current 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.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.62 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on CRM shares. KeyCorp upgraded Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim cut shares of Salesforce from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $247.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.63.

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.