Retirement Solution LLC Acquires New Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Retirement Solution LLC bought a new position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 1,042 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $280,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $258.25 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.77 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $268.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $299.93. The company has a market cap of $246.89 billion, a PE ratio of 42.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 25.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CRM shares. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $325.00 price target for the company. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Salesforce from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $420.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $346.34.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 3,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $931,430.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 125,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,614,048.68. This trade represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 705 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.44, for a total transaction of $197,005.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,605,219.12. The trade was a 7.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 40,332 shares of company stock valued at $11,024,802. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.