Northwest Bank & Trust Co Acquires Shares of 5,963 Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Northwest Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,963 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,569,000. Salesforce accounts for about 1.4% of Northwest Bank & Trust Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 333.3% during the 4th quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM traded up $2.91 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $231.94. The stock had a trading volume of 8,833,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,624,135. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $268.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $276.94. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.68 and a 52 week high of $318.71. The company has a market capitalization of $224.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.25. 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 (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.15 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 11.57%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.66, for a total value of $3,249,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,407,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,688,171,467.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 2,425 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.15, for a total value of $662,388.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,856 shares in the company, valued at $1,599,566.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 15,000 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.66, for a total value of $3,249,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 12,407,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,688,171,467.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 634,670 shares of company stock worth $178,310,008 in the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on CRM shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Salesforce from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $292.79.

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.