Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. cut its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 19,300 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 1,800 shares during the period. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $6,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 85.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total value of $1,872,521.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at $14,071,750. This trade represents a 11.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robin L. Washington acquired 1,695 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $294.61 per share, for a total transaction of $499,363.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 43,445 shares in the company, valued at $12,799,331.45. The trade was a 4.06 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,108,793 shares of company stock valued at $383,156,227 in the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $284.88 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $320.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $308.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $273.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.85, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month 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 1.11.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. TD Cowen raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $365.62.

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.