Elgethun Capital Management Buys 145 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Elgethun Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 14.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,144 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. Elgethun Capital Management’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Stephens started coverage on Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective 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. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $247.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $361.42.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM opened at $240.26 on Monday. 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 twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average of $302.46 and a 200-day moving average of $311.80.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 26.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Oscar Munoz bought 3,882 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $257.28 per share, for a total transaction of $998,760.96. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 11,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,046,967.04. This represents a 48.76 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $298,055.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at $15,534,090. This represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 45,660 shares of company stock valued at $14,095,336 in the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.