Townsend & Associates Inc Makes New Investment in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Townsend & Associates Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 639 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 period. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total transaction of $614,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,575,904. This trade represents a 8.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,102,833 shares of company stock valued at $381,389,136 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 price target (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 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 issued a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.53.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM stock opened at $309.54 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $296.23 billion, a PE ratio of 50.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $333.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $305.72.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.32%.

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.