Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Acquired by Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC

Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 19.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,275 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 25.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 19,008 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,203,000 after buying an additional 3,846 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Oak Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the third quarter worth about $323,000. Bull Oak Capital LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce during the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. West Michigan Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 732.1% in the third quarter. West Michigan Advisors LLC now owns 13,522 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,702,000 after acquiring an additional 11,897 shares during the period. Finally, Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV boosted its position in Salesforce by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV now owns 5,465 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,496,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CRM. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price (up from $300.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $335.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Wedbush lifted their price target on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $312.51.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.28, for a total transaction of $1,080,576.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,251,239.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 86,812 shares of company stock worth $23,418,916 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM stock opened at $290.23 on Friday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.68 and a 52-week high of $318.71. The business has a fifty day moving average of $268.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $263.24. The stock has a market cap of $281.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

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

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders 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 yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.78%.

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.