Advocate Group LLC Buys Shares of 12,033 Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Advocate Group LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 12,033 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,281,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 87,913,628 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $23,592,501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383,942 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 6.9% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,258,518 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,484,616,000 after acquiring an additional 600,386 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 5.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,014,148 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,419,037,000 after acquiring an additional 437,435 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter worth $2,039,196,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 4.9% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,362,035 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,707,316,000 after acquiring an additional 295,681 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.3%

CRM stock opened at $242.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $226.48 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The company has a 50-day moving average of $244.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $258.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.19.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.13. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The company had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.56 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Salesforce has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.330-11.370 EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at 2.840-2.860 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th were issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 17th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 24.13%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.79, for a total value of $539,527.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,856,275,610.09. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 78,750 shares of company stock worth $19,634,805 in the last three months. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $335.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $430.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $365.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Twenty-six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $331.89.

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.