Oarsman Capital Inc. Sells 56 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Oarsman Capital Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,026 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 56 shares during the quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,473 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $12,194,000 after purchasing an additional 4,752 shares in the last quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,215,000. Athena Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at about $236,000. Highland Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $4,321,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,395,132,000 after acquiring an additional 257,501 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Trading Down 5.9 %

NYSE CRM opened at $240.26 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $230.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $302.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $311.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price 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. Bank of America reduced their target price on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Stephens began coverage on Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $361.42.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian Millham sold 3,937 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $1,120,391.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 5,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,570,312.44. The trade was a 41.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336 over the last quarter. Corporate 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.