Harfst & Associates Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Harfst & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 28.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,093 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,553 shares during the quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,941,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 186.7% during the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Red Tortoise LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total transaction of $1,217,454.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,353,653.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total value of $1,217,454.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at $34,353,653.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $229,434.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 51,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,072,660.02. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 80,612 shares of company stock worth $21,429,961. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $311.66.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM traded up $1.83 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $292.94. The stock had a trading volume of 3,087,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,414,292. The firm has a market cap of $283.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.71, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.68 and a fifty-two week high of $318.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $266.65 and a 200-day moving average of $263.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

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

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

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.