Howard Capital Management Group LLC Has $38.47 Million Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 115,060 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. Salesforce comprises approximately 2.6% of Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $38,468,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Salesforce during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its position in Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 135.6% during the 3rd quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $53,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.7 %

Salesforce stock opened at $326.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $336.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $292.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The company has a market capitalization of $312.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Northland Capmk raised Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $368.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one 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 $377.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, COO Brian Millham sold 969 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.56, for a total transaction of $277,676.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total value of $249,995,253.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,192,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,104,786,234.99. This trade represents a 18.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,172,167 shares of company stock valued at $402,223,235 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.