Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock Holdings Increased by Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 4.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 20,860 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 814 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up 0.7% of Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $5,598,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.5%

NYSE CRM opened at $273.77 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $272.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $290.51. The company has a market capitalization of $261.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.36.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 25.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Miguel Milano sold 405 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total transaction of $106,251.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,605,922.55. This trade represents a 3.92% 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 Srinivas Tallapragada sold 1,269 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $332,922.15. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,196,573.30. This trade represents a 2.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,034 shares of company stock valued at $8,833,235 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CRM shares. UBS Group set a $404.00 price target on shares of Salesforce and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. DA Davidson reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $349.08.

Salesforce Company 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.