Advisors Asset Management Inc. Acquires 2,665 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 13.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,083 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,665 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $6,044,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its position in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 816.7% during 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 last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CRM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Salesforce from $305.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $329.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.90, for a total value of $1,104,180.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,912,044.90. This represents a 3.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 133,183 shares of company stock valued at $38,314,066. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 3.2 %

NYSE:CRM opened at $336.19 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $292.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $268.20. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $348.86. The company has a market capitalization of $321.40 billion, a PE ratio of 58.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.63 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.83%.

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.