Zacks Investment Management Has $9.56 Million Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Zacks Investment Management increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 14.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,918 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,489 shares during the quarter. Zacks Investment Management’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $9,558,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Price Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $361.99 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $309.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $272.88. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $346.06 billion, a PE ratio of 59.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. The trade was a 13.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,982 shares of company stock worth $41,591,457 over the last three months. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CRM shares. DA Davidson upped their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $415.00 price target (up from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $372.86.

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.