Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Smithfield Trust Co

Smithfield Trust Co cut its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 1.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,966 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 51 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $809,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter valued at about $874,748,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter worth approximately $733,805,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Salesforce by 48.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,906,877 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,518,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,922,674 shares during the last quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its stake in Salesforce by 376.1% in the 2nd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,442,453 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $370,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 171.2% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,634,834 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $447,470,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032,068 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 3,528 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.59, for a total value of $884,081.52. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares in the company, valued at $29,464,622.79. The trade was a 2.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $18,156,600.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 133,183 shares of company stock valued at $38,314,066. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Up 3.2 %

Salesforce stock opened at $336.19 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $321.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.47, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $348.86. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $292.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $268.20.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 27.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CRM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Salesforce from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $270.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $329.11.

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.