Ossiam Sells 443,578 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Ossiam lowered its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 95.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,246 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 443,578 shares during the period. Ossiam’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $6,700,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Graypoint LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 10,504 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,764,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp now owns 10,377 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,730,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 353 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,295 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $341,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Fox Hill Wealth Management grew its stake in Salesforce by 4.0% during the first quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management now owns 985 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE CRM traded up $6.75 on Thursday, hitting $256.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,155,260 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,821,308. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.68 and a 52-week high of $318.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $251.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $275.37. The firm has a market cap of $248.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.14, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 29th. The CRM provider reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.06. Salesforce had a return on equity of 11.57% and a net margin of 15.30%. The business had revenue of $9.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 9th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on CRM. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Salesforce from $350.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target (down previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $292.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director G Mason Morfit acquired 428,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $233.17 per share, with a total value of $99,796,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,914,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $912,699,429.53. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Salesforce news, Director G Mason Morfit bought 428,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $233.17 per share, with a total value of $99,796,760.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,914,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $912,699,429.53. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $105,637.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at $1,644,921.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 339,242 shares of company stock worth $90,405,271. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.