Novo Holdings A S Reduces Stock Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Novo Holdings A S decreased its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 20.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 293,901 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 74,659 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up about 5.9% of Novo Holdings A S’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Novo Holdings A S’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $98,260,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% in the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:CRM opened at $268.46 on Thursday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $270.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $307.83. The stock has a market cap of $258.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.15, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Stephens began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Guggenheim raised Salesforce from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $350.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $167,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,202,758.58. This represents a 7.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 52,051 shares of company stock worth $15,027,714. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.