Rep. James Comer Acquires Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Representative James Comer (R-Kentucky) recently bought shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM). In a filing disclosed on January 10th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in Salesforce stock on January 2nd.

Representative James Comer also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Dover (NYSE:DOV) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Home Depot (NYSE:HD) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Amphenol (NYSE:APH) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) on 1/2/2025.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE:CRM opened at $323.31 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $309.41 billion, a PE ratio of 53.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.30. 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 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $336.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $290.66.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 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 business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Salesforce from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 target price (up from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $376.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total value of $614,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,575,904. This trade represents a 8.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.82, for a total value of $1,213,044.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,229,213.48. The trade was a 3.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,177,617 shares of company stock valued at $403,542,975 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Veritas Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in Salesforce in the third quarter valued at about $733,805,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Salesforce by 48.3% in the second 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. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Salesforce by 171.2% during the third 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 during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 23,664.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,002,848 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $274,490,000 after purchasing an additional 998,628 shares during the period. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 51.0% in the second quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,946,838 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $757,632,000 after buying an additional 994,670 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Representative Comer

James Comer Jr. (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District. He assumed office on November 14, 2016. His current term ends on January 3, 2025. Comer (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022. Prior to serving in Congress, Comer was the Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture from 2012 to 2016, and the Kentucky House of Representatives from 2001 to 2012. He also unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Kentucky in 2015. A writer for the Louisville Courier-Journal called Comer “instrumental in the final passage of a five-year farm bill,” noting that he served on the conference committee that produced the final version of the bill. Comer is from Tompkinsville, Ky. He acted as the director of South Central Bank for 12 years and has been the co-owner of the Comer Land and Cattle Company. He previously served as president of CFB Foods Incorporated from 2001 to 2003 and president of Comer and Polston Insurance Incorporated from 1993 to 1995.

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.