Prospect Financial Services LLC Makes New Investment in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Prospect Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 607 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.23, for a total transaction of $145,115.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,888,236.38. This trade represents a 7.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 317,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.78, for a total value of $109,965,671.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 12,162,457 shares in the company, valued at $4,217,696,838.46. The trade was a 2.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,109,169 shares of company stock worth $383,432,020. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $377.63.

Salesforce Trading Up 4.0 %

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $347.26 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $336.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $294.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $332.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.12, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. 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 (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 the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. Salesforce’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current 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 given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

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.