Joseph Group Capital Management Grows Holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Joseph Group Capital Management boosted its holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 14.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 10,073 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the period. Joseph Group Capital Management’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,703,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $823,000. Heartland Bank & Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 117.2% during the 1st quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $5,249,000. Elwood Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $1,337,000. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 13.5% during the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 23,828 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $6,394,000 after purchasing an additional 2,837 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Miguel Milano sold 405 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $106,251.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,605,922.55. This represents a 3.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 1,142 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total value of $299,603.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 136,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,895,776.40. This represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,284 shares of company stock valued at $9,444,537 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE CRM opened at $263.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce Inc. has a 1 year low of $230.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $272.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $289.84. The company has a market cap of $252.34 billion, a PE ratio of 41.31, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.36.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a $0.416 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 25.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Stephens lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $311.00 to $309.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. DA Davidson reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Westpark Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $348.68.

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.