Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd.

Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd. lowered its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 11,323 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 384 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for about 1.4% of Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $3,039,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Notis McConarty Edward increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 71.6% during the first quarter. Notis McConarty Edward now owns 3,844 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 121.9% during the first quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 355,000 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $95,222,000 after purchasing an additional 195,000 shares during the period. Delaney Dennis R increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 66.1% during the first quarter. Delaney Dennis R now owns 5,694 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,528,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266 shares during the period. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 34.5% during the first quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 4,948 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,328,000 after purchasing an additional 1,270 shares during the period. Finally, Mathes Company Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 396.9% during the first quarter. Mathes Company Inc. now owns 12,298 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,300,000 after purchasing an additional 9,823 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.40, for a total value of $558,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,958,834,236.40. The trade was a 0.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 46,479 shares of company stock valued at $12,457,591. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $240.09 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $229.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $230.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $263.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $278.75.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.44 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 25.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CRM. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. UBS Group set a $404.00 target price on Salesforce and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Salesforce from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $275.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Northland Securities lowered their target price on Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $348.16.

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.