Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 25.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,746 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,753 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,937,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nvest Financial LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. OMC Financial Services LTD lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD now owns 11,390 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 787 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Sachetta LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,684,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Prossimo Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 3,366 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,125,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total transaction of $141,050.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,805,936.08. This trade represents a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock worth $381,283,706. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM opened at $297.63 on Friday. 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 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $329.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $307.58. The company has a market cap of $284.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.62 earnings per share. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $365.32.

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.