Probity Advisors Inc. Buys 184 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Probity Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,163 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Probity Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $866,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prentice Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,506 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $686,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 4.0% in the first quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management now owns 985 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.8% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 4,946 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,490,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its stake in Salesforce by 0.4% during the third quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 9,269 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,537,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, CRA Financial Services LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 3.4% during the third quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 1,160 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.4 %

CRM opened at $292.00 on Thursday. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $193.68 and a one year high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $265.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $263.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $282.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.32, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 28.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, August 26th. FBN Securities raised shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, September 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $310.74.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, COO Brian Millham sold 2,037 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.75, for a total transaction of $506,703.75. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $484,316.25. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $229,434.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 51,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,072,660.02. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 2,037 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.75, for a total transaction of $506,703.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 1,947 shares in the company, valued at approximately $484,316.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 80,612 shares of company stock worth $21,429,961 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.